Committee accepts House amendments to legislative budget, okays use of 15th-floor space for staff

A joint Senate-House committee voted to accept House amendments to the legislative budget that increase several line items, transfer printing costs to the secretary of state and add a provision allowing Legislative Council staff to use office space on the Capitol's 15th floor to house additional employees.

Representative Meyer, who walked the committee through the House changes, said the measure raises the "maximum monthly increase" for an unspecified benefit from $2,079 to $2,475 and that passage of Senate Bill 2084 added $198,000 to the budget. "The first thing that we did was we added funding, for the maximum monthly increase," Meyer said.

The House amendments also add $10,000 for legislators' form dues, and add $290,000 for public printing of bill copies; the printing amount was described as a transfer of funding from the Office of the Secretary of State tied to House Bill 1002. Committee members were told there is a $650,000 operating reduction because the nuclear study originally in the budget was enacted separately in House Bill 1025 and so the study funding was removed from this appropriation. Representative Meyer noted a section 11 emergency clause that the House had added did not pass on the House floor.

The House changes include a provision to allow use of legislative rooms on the Capitol's 15th floor to accommodate additional Legislative Council employees. Committee members discussed whether the 15th floor would be sufficient; John Bjornson, legislative council director, told the committee that the floor provides about 6,000 square feet and could potentially accommodate up to 44 office spaces though the Council expects to use a mix of offices and open work areas. Bjornson said a second phase of the plan could add another 25 employees and that the space analysis shows that the 15th floor would be "adequate."

Senator Dwyer and other members raised concerns about colocating staff and the practical difficulties of keeping Legislative Council employees cohesive if they are spread across multiple floors. Members noted Career and Technical Education (CTE) currently occupies the 15th floor and that any move would need to respect CTE's schedule; Representative Meyer said there is money in the CTE budget for moving costs, described in the discussion as "onwards upwards of 200 and some thousand" dollars (amount not specified precisely in the meeting).

Sarah Wozick moved to accept the House amendments; Representative Meyer seconded. The clerk conducted a roll call. Recorded yes votes in the portion of the roll called on the transcript included Representative Plough, Representative Kampek, Representative Meyer, Senator Wozick, Senator Dwyer and Senator Seclerc. The chair announced, "The motion passes."

Discussion versus decision: the committee's approval formally adopted the House changes into the committee version of the legislative budget. The committee's discussion captured operational questions about workspace logistics, potential need for a second phase of staffing increases and timing for any physical moves; staff were not given additional formal direction in the portions of the transcript provided beyond acceptance of the House amendments.

What happens next: by accepting the House changes in committee, the amendments are recorded as the committee's position; the transcript does not record further implementation steps or specific move dates.

Votes at a glance: motion to accept House amendments ' mover: Sarah Wozick; second: Representative Meyer; outcome: approved (recorded yes votes on the transcript: Representative Plough, Representative Kampek, Representative Meyer, Senator Wozick, Senator Dwyer, Senator Seclerc).