Montana Legislature continues work on budget fix

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana lawmakers continued to work Wednesday evening on a package of bills to account for a projected $227 million state budget deficit, with provisions for further cuts if the governor rejects some of the terms and instructions for how cuts and transfers could be reversed if the state's finances improve.

The Senate passed a bill Wednesday that seeks to essentially force Gov. Steve Bullock to extend for 10 years CoreCivic's contract to operate a private prison in Shelby in exchange for the state tapping about $32 million in funding.
It gives him until June to put $15 million of the money into the state fire fund. The bill still must go to the House.
If Bullock fails to extend the prison contract, the bill calls for additional budget cuts as the state deals with a deficit created by lower-than-expected revenues and a devastating fire season.
Democrats argued that the Legislature should not be dictating the governor's actions with regard to a state contract. Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, argued nothing in his bill prevented the governor from negotiating a better contract with CoreCivic.
Lawmakers sent the governor a bill that calls for $15 million in employee cuts that can be made by furloughing workers who make more than $50,000 annually. Democrats spoke emotionally against the bill.
The House Appropriations Committee was still working Wednesday evening on a bill to transfer millions of dollars in funds from numerous agencies into the state general fund. If the governor rejects any of those transfers, lawmakers call for more cuts.
Both houses have approved bills proposed by the governor to withhold $8.2 million in block grants to schools, withhold payments into the state employee health plan for two months to save $10.4 million and to withhold state payments from the judge's retirement system through July 2019 to save $2.7 million.
The governor made $76.6 million in budget cuts on Tuesday that lawmakers put into an amended budget bill on Wednesday. Democrats argue that prevents the governor from reversing the cuts if the state's finances improve.
Another portion of the prison bill dictates how the cuts and transfers would be reversed.
Democratic Sen. Jon Sesso, of Butte, said he felt the package of bills that was emerging was one that he could support, even if he didn't like all of the elements.
OTHER ACTIONS
— The Senate passed a bill to require PacificSource and the Montana Health Care Co-op to pay premium taxes of 2.5 percent while reducing Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana's premium taxes from 2.75 percent to 2.5 percent. The House must still consider that bill that would bring in about $8 million.
— The House initially rejected a Senate bill that would temporarily charge a 3 percent management fee on Montana State Fund assets above $1 billion, expected to bring in nearly $30 million. Lawmakers then voted to reconsider the bill. It remained in play Wednesday evening.
— The Senate Taxation Committee tabled bills that would have temporarily raised taxes on hotels and rental cars and another that would require online companies to remit the lodging facility use tax to the state.