(Host) At this hour, the Vermont House is debating the ‘Challenges for Change’ bill – that’s legislation designed to cut next year’s budget by streamlining some of the operations of state government.
But because the bill doesn’t achieve all of the targeted savings, the House has voted to come back in a special session in July to review additional reductions.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel reports.
(Kinzel) The goal of the plan was to trim spending by 38 million dollars – but this bill falls short of that goal because it only cuts the budget by roughly half of that amount.
Burlington Rep. Mark Larson is vice chairman of the House Appropriations committee.
He says the bill focuses on desired outcomes for many state programs and saves money by implementing a variety of efficiency measures:
(Larson) "The Challenges process was not about – and was never intended to be – an effort to provide less to Vermonters. It was in fact just the opposite. It was an effort to say that we can continue to do more, even in difficult times."
(Kinzel) Larson says the bill also ensures that there will be no layoffs or cuts in benefit programs to achieve any additional savings:
(Larson ) "In essence, strategies that promised nothing more than ‘less for less’ were not to be used as a way of accomplishing the financial targets that are under the Challenges bill."
(Kinzel) Some of the largest cuts involve the Corrections Department. The goal is reduce the state’s prison population by 300 inmates.
Institutions chairwoman Alice Emmons says this target can be achieved by reinvesting some of the savings into transitional housing for inmates, drug rehab programs and an expanded use of electronic bracelets:
(Emmons) "In order to do that we need to provide services to those offenders so there’s a successful re-entry and they do not re-offend. In the end, our communities will be much safer and the offender will be more likely to succeed."
(Kinzel) The plan to hold a special session this summer came from the Republican caucus.
Jamaica Rep. Oliver Olsen said his proposal would give various committees more time to review additional cuts and he suggested that lawmakers return to the Statehouse in June:
(Olsen) "We’ll know exactly what it is that we’ll be voting on and we’ll know how we’re going to achieve the $38 million target that we set for ourselves which the bill before us today unfortunately does not."
(Kinzel) House Democratic leader Floyd Nease supported the approach but proposed that lawmakers come back in mid July when new revenue information would be available:
(Nease) "Mr. Speaker I want to thank members of the minority caucus for having a great idea… and I mean it."
(Kinzel) The House supported the plan by a vote of 130 to 12.
The Challenges legislation is scheduled to come up for final approval in the House on Friday and a number of new amendments will be considered at that time.
For VPR News, I’m Bob Kinzel in Montpelier.