Appropriations committee reviews SIF impact report and statewide vacant‑position summary

Chairman Nathan called the committee to order and directed staff to review two handouts: the Strategic Investment and Improvements Fund impact report and a statewide FTE (vacant positions) inventory.

The SIF impact report compiled bills introduced through the week and separated items with revenue effects from those with appropriation requests. Staff summarized the current snapshot as containing roughly $211 million in possible revenue reductions and about $908 million in potential appropriations, excluding items already accounted for in the budget system. Staff cautioned the totals exclude amounts already reflected in budget status — for example, a $26 million item tied to House Bill 1038 that is already in budget status and therefore not double‑counted.

The committee also reviewed a statewide vacant‑positions report showing the number of positions agencies listed as vacant as of Dec. 1. Staff told members the list contained about 784 vacant positions, with associated biennial funding of about $91 million in general fund and about $71.2 million in other funds — a combined total near $162.2 million in position funding. Staff noted a substantial share of the vacancies are in the Department of Human Services (DHHS), which accounted for roughly 375 positions and about $75.6 million in biennial funding.

Staff explained the report includes each vacancy’s position title, date vacated, months vacant and an agency narrative; committee members were given a 17‑month benchmark to compare against the biennium. "If it was vacant since the start of the biennium, 17 months would be kind of your benchmark," staff said, adding some entries reflect newly created positions that simply have not been filled yet. Chairman Nathan and members said they plan to scrutinize vacancies during budget hearings and ask agencies to justify extended vacancies, especially those longer than 18 months.

Representative Lee Richter asked about several identical vacancy entries on page 8; staff said those duplicate lines would be part of follow‑up questions to agencies to determine whether the positions are new, mistakenly duplicated, or intentionally unfilled. Committee members directed staff and agencies to prepare explanations before hearings that address whether vacant positions are still needed or can be removed from agency budgets.

Committee members did not take formal votes during the briefing; the chair then opened the hearing for House Bill 1019 (Parks and Recreation).