Joint Finance committee accepts technical corrections to CEC recommendation letter

The Joint Finance and Appropriation Committee accepted technical corrections to the committee’s CEC recommendation letter by unanimous consent on Monday, Jan. 13.

Frances Lippitt, budget and policy analyst with the Legislative Services Office, told the committee staff identified wording in the draft CEC recommendation that did not match the motion the committee passed previously. Lippitt said the first correction clarified that the committee recommended a salary increase “of a dollar 55 per hour per FTP” (FTE). The second correction clarified that the committee’s motion to recommend a 4.5% market‑based increase for IT and engineering employees is intended to be in addition to the $1.55 per hour per FTE adjustment.

Representative Petzke asked whether the 4.5% market‑based increase would apply to IT and engineering staff regardless of the agency where they work; Lippitt replied that the motion covered employees on the IT and engineering salary schedule and may not cover nonclassified IT and engineering staff who work for constitutional officers, which JFAC may choose to address separately.

Madam Chair Harmon asked for unanimous consent to accept the corrected letter; hearing no objection, the committee chair ordered the corrections accepted.

No recorded roll call vote accompanied the unanimous consent action, and the committee took no additional formal action on compensation in that moment; subsequent budget decisions on compensation will happen as part of the committee’s program maintenance and budget‑setting process later in the week.