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Committee restores $500 million early‑childhood distribution and adds reporting and triggers in HB71 amendment
Summary
Senate Finance adopted an amendment to House Bill 71 that reverts an earlier House‑floor cap and restores a $500,000,000 early‑childhood distribution for specified years, splits some revenue streams temporarily, and adds reporting and a corpus‑protection trigger. The committee reported the bill unanimously.
The Senate Finance Committee adopted an amendment to House Bill 71 that restores a $500,000,000 annual distribution from the early childhood trust fund for the specified period, replaces a House‑floor provision that had capped the distribution at $400,000,000, and adds reporting and a corpus‑protection trigger.
Committee members and staff said the amendment splits certain revenue streams feeding the early childhood trust fund and the behavioral health trust fund for several fiscal years (fiscal 2026–2029 in the amendment text) so that money is available now for early‑childhood programs while preserving a mechanism that returns flows to the trust if the corpus falls below an end‑of‑year threshold. The amendment also requires state auditor reporting on funds flowing out of the trust fund so the legislature can track spending.
Adrian (staff member) explained the amendment’s mechanics, saying it removes the House floor amendment capping the distribution at $400,000,000 and reverts to the initial $500,000,000 distribution. He said two revenue streams feeding the trust would be split 50/50 for a limited period and that if the fund balance dropped below a trigger level the flows would revert to restore the corpus.
Committee action: The committee adopted the amendment (motion to move amendment for discussion by Senator Gonzalez; second by Senator Woods). The amendment was adopted by committee (roll call recorded by the clerk; the committee reported adoption). Later the committee voted to report House Bill 71 as amended with a due‑pass recommendation; the final roll call for the bill showed an 11–0 vote in favor.
Why it matters: The early‑childhood trust fund is a long‑term corpus intended to support early‑childhood programs; the amendment seeks to balance immediate program funding with protections for the fund’s corpus and requires additional oversight reporting.
What’s next: With the committee’s due‑pass recommendation (11–0), the amended House Bill 71 moves to the full chamber for consideration.
