Joint Fiscal Office deputy explains Budget Adjustment Act and why midyear changes occur

Emily Byrne, deputy fiscal officer at the Joint Fiscal Office, told legislators that the Budget Adjustment Act (BAA) is the Legislature’s midyear vehicle to update spending authority and revenue projections based on new information.

The presentation, given during a committee meeting, explained why state budgets change between the as‑passed appropriation and midyear reviews: revenue forecasts are updated, program caseloads and utilization shift, one‑time events occur and agency contracts or service level agreements (particularly IT procurement through the Agency of Digital Services) can alter costs.

Byrne outlined the timeline for a state budget: the executive branch began building the FY2025 budget on Aug. 31, 2023; the governor presented it to the General Assembly on Jan. 23, 2024; and the governor signed the FY2025 budget into law on May 23, 2024. She said the Emergency Board adopted a new revenue forecast on July 31, 2024, that projected an additional $172,000,000 in available revenue for FY2025, and that the Emergency…