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Joint Finance Committee adopts FY2025 general fund revenue projection; FY2026 revenue choice postponed after divided votes
Summary
The committee adopted the Economic Outlook and Revenue Assessment Committee's FY2025 general fund revenue projection but could not reach a majority in both houses on competing FY2026 forecasts and postponed the FY2026 decision.
The Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee adopted the Economic Outlook and Revenue Assessment Committee (EROAC) recommendation for the fiscal year 2025 general fund revenue projection and set agency budgets to that amount, while debate over fiscal year 2026 revenue projections ended without a conclusive, bicameral majority.
Senator Woodward moved that the joint committee adopt EROAC’s FY2025 general fund revenue projection of $5,990,000,000 for setting state agency budgets. The motion was seconded. The committee recorded a unanimous vote: a combined total of 20 ayes, 0 nays and 0 absent, with a majority from both the Senate and House certified by the chair. The motion passed.
Later the committee took up FY2026 revenue projections. The Economic Outlook and Revenue Assessment Committee had recommended a $6,400,000,000 projection; the governor’s budget recommended a lower number and staff materials noted multiple forecast scenarios. Representative Petsky moved the EROAC recommendation, and Senator Woodward offered a substitute motion setting a $6,330,000,000 projection in the spirit of compromise. The substitute motion carried in the Senate but failed to achieve the required majority across both chambers at the JFAC vote (grand total: 8 ayes, 12 nays). The committee then considered the original motion (the EROAC $6.4 billion recommendation) but failed to secure a majority in both houses: the final tally reported was 14 ayes, 6 nays overall but the chair concluded the measure “failed to get a majority of both houses” and postponed further action.
Committee members debated the merits of conservative versus optimistic revenue settings. Supporters of the EROAC number argued economists’ work produced a reasonable floor for agency budgets; supporters of the lower, compromise number said prudence and recent economic uncertainty counseled a more conservative setting. Chair Groh explained the committee’s procedural practice: to strengthen floor passage chances, the committee seeks majorities from both the House and Senate before sending budget-setting motions onward.
Ending: The committee adopted the FY2025 revenue projection. The FY2026 revenue choice remains unresolved and was postponed; members said they will revisit the FY2026 revenue number at a future meeting once leadership and committees reconcile the differences.
