It’s coming down to the wire for the Joint Finance Committee to begin cutting next year’s budget, only trimming about a million dollars a week into their work.
JFC faces a projected $75.3 million shortfall from Gov. Jack Markell’s (D) proposed spending plan.
Joint Finance Committee co-chair Rep. Melanie George Smith (D-Bear) admitted at one point Tuesday that they “keep kicking the can down the road on these votes.”
“Frankly, there are just some cuts that we just have to make and that’s why the committee has to give their time and consideration to the cuts that we’re asking them to make," said Smith. "We’re trying to minimize those cuts that will be made to the ones that will be the least painful.”
But much of those cuts involve pruning vacant positions across state government that haven’t been filled, or switching how and when to pay their bills – temporarily saving them money up front until the next fiscal year.
The problem will only be exacerbated next year should revenues continue to stay flat after lawmakers eagerly approved tens of millions of dollars in corporate tax cuts and credits to appeal to DuPont.
JFC set aside approving budgets for three entire divisions Tuesday – including funding for Delaware State Police and University of Delaware – totaling nearly $500 million.
Much of that total deals with payroll. Smith says they’re combing through agencies for positions that haven’t been filled for years.
“We are asking staff as we speak for lists of vacancies on the theory that if nobody is in the position we really ought to take this opportunity to look at whether that position is absolutely critical to the function of state government,” Smith said.
JFC is also again considering cutting $1.2 million in funding for Sussex County state troopers – a proposal floated last year that was quickly swatted down.
Smith maintains that a final budget will be in place by the end of Thursday.
