General Assembly to Return October 20th for Targeted Budget Cuts
October 14, 2008 by senatormcconnell
Speaker Bobby Harrell and Senator Glenn McConnell just released the following statement:
General Assembly to Return October 20th for Targeted Budget Cuts
(Columbia, SC) – In a joint statement about the Legislature returning to make targeted budget cuts, House Speaker Bobby Harrell and Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell said:
“The House and Senate will return in session Monday, October 20th in order to make targeted budget cuts. Using input from members from both bodies and the Executive Branch, House and Senate Leaders are putting together a proposed plan and have been seeking input from members.
“The plan will make targeted cuts to agencies while protecting the funding for some of the most critical areas of government. Additionally, we are recommending that our cuts need to go beyond the 6 percent requirement of the Board of Economic Advisors. Our budget plan will go an additional percentage point and addresses a 7 percent reduction in spending to better secure this budget and future budgets.
State cuts hit home
October 13, 2008 by senatormcconnell
Cities, counties, schools wrestle with budget woes
Local schools and governmental bodies are scrambling to figure out how they will manage with less state revenue.
On the heels of a 3 percent budget cut in August, state officials announced this past week that the state will have to do without an additional 6 percent.
The state’s Board of Economic Advisers said Wednesday that escalating fuel and food prices, sagging home sales, slumping home values and a shaky job market are to blame. Read more
More headaches
October 13, 2008 by senatormcconnell
Painful S.C. budget cuts may extend to schools, law enforcement efforts
Specialist Justin Bohan holds his head as he works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday Oct. 9, 2008. Stocks plunged in the final minutes of trading Thursday, sending the Dow Jones industrials down more than 675 points, or more than 7 percent.
Cutting high school sports, conservation efforts and crimes investigated by state law enforcement are all possibilities in the looming South Carolina budget crisis.
Legislative leaders were negotiating on how to slash hundreds of millions from the state’s $7 billion budget, following a move Wednesday by the state’s economic advisers to cut revenue projections by a total of $554 million. Read more
S.C. revenue estimate slashed again
October 13, 2008 by senatormcconnell
Legislators must make total of $554 million in cuts
South Carolina is facing a half-billion budget hole, after state economists reduced revenue estimates for the second time since July.
The state Board of Economic Advisors reduced its revenue estimate by 6 percent Wednesday, which followed a 2 percent cut in July.
Those two reductions total $554 million from the budget year that began July 1, and mean an additional $210 million in cuts and savings are needed to balance the now $6.7 billion budget. Read more
Session likely before Nov. 4
October 8, 2008 by senatormcconnell
State’s financial situation will become more clear after budget forecasters meet today
The way things looked Tuesday had state Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell thinking it’s likely the Legislature will be back in session before Election Day.
Any decision on when legislators could return to the Statehouse will be more concrete after today when South Carolina’s budget forecasters meet to assess the state’s financial situation.
The Board of Economic Advisors likely will drop expected revenue collections by at least 4 percent, or $250 million, triggering a special session for the Legislature to rebalance the current fiscal year’s budget. Read more
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