Conference negotiators flag $42,000 fee shortfall in Attorney General budget; reduction may be required

Negotiators on the H.493 conference committee told staff on Oct. 11, 2025, that the Attorney General’s office built its budget assuming about $42,000 of revenue from fee increases that were not included in the enacted fee changes. That discrepancy means the committee may have to reduce the AG’s appropriation unless other offsets are identified.

During discussion, a negotiator observed that the AG’s budget “assumes the $42,000 from the fee increases,” and staff confirmed the governor’s recommended budget had the same assumption. Committee members said the fee increases had not been finalized and had not “landed” in the enacted language or elsewhere in the budget documents, producing the shortfall.

Why it matters: the AG’s operating budget is sensitive to fee revenue assumptions. A $42,000 discrepancy in a single office’s budget requires either an offset elsewhere or a reduction to match available revenue, and negotiators noted they had not been told of this assumption earlier in their meeting.

Committee response and process: negotiators said they would hold off immediate action once the discrepancy was identified and planned follow-up with staff for clarification. One staff member said the attorney general’s office had been informed that it was “highly unlikely” the matter could be resolved at this late stage, and negotiators discussed whether to reduce the AG’s budget to reflect the missing fees.

Outcome noted: committee members paused further movement on the AG allocation pending clarification from staff and possible reconsideration of budget offsets. The group recorded this as new information that required follow-up before final conference text could be drafted.

Ending: negotiators directed staff to investigate the source of the assumed fee revenue and report back; no formal motion to reduce the AG budget was recorded during the meeting.