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Ways and Means previews budget with $211 million in new income tax relief, $666 million in new recurring revenue
Summary
The House Ways and Means Committee chair framed the upcoming budget as focused on tax relief, targeted investments, and fiscal restraint, saying the plan includes $211 million in new income tax relief, $666 million in new recurring revenue and $1.25 billion in one-time funds.
The chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee opened the committee’s budget presentation calling it “the proverbial budget roadshow,” and outlined priorities of tax cuts, targeted investments and responsible budgeting for the coming fiscal year.
The chair said the package includes $211,000,000 in new income tax relief and over $1 billion overall in tax reductions in this budget cycle; if no other changes occur, the top income-tax rate would fall to 6 percent under measures in the proposal. The committee expects about $666,000,000 in new recurring general‑fund revenue and roughly $1,250,000,000 in one‑time (nonrecurring) funds available for capital projects and other needs.
Why it matters: the chair framed the plan as a balance of returning money to taxpayers and funding core state services. He said the state has returned about $50,000,000,000 to taxpayers over the last 30 years and that some tax relief is ongoing, not one‑time. He also said agencies requested about $1.6 billion in recurring dollars and the committee has $666 million to handle those recurring requests.
Committee staff explained the general‑fund recurring base is approximately $14.1 billion, with recurring revenue up about $666 million from the prior year. The chair described the budget’s themes as “meaningful tax cuts,” “smart investments” in core government services and “responsible budgeting” to avoid commitments the state cannot keep.
Discussion and next steps: staff said slides and supporting documents will be posted online and the Ways and Means staff will be available over the weekend to draft and review amendments. The presentation was framed as the start of the appropriations process; members were advised that bringing amendments to analysts early is essential because the floor process will move quickly.
No formal vote took place during the roadshow; the presentation was an overview ahead of the committee and floor consideration next week.
