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Lawmakers debate employee health insurance increase and reserve levels; neither proposal wins required cross‑chamber majority
Summary
Lawmakers debated competing FY2026 health‑insurance baseline recommendations — $14,300 (governor) versus $13,960 (CEC) — and discussed actuarial reserve risks, but neither proposal secured the committee’s required majority in both chambers.
The Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee spent significant time on statewide personnel benefit costs, particularly the base appropriation for employee health insurance for eligible full‑time positions in FY2026.
Analysts explained two competing recommendations: the Economic Outlook/CEC committee recommended setting the baseline at $13,960 per eligible FTE (a $960 increase over the current base), producing an estimated general‑fund impact included in the committee packet; the governor’s recommendation raised the baseline to $14,300 per eligible FTE (a $1,300 increase). Committee staff said the CEC number would reduce the fund balance to the statutory 10% contingency threshold while the governor’s…
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