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Senate amends supplemental appropriations, splits jail contracting and reimbursement
Summary
On March 5 the Utah Senate amended the supplemental appropriations bill (HB2) to reallocate jail funding lines to $3.5 million each, adopting an amendment to even-split jail contracting and jail reimbursement monies; HB2 then passed the Senate 26–1 and goes to the House.
The Utah Senate debated and amended the new fiscal-year supplemental appropriations bill (House Bill 2) on March 5, focusing in floor debate on how to allocate one-time funding for jail contracting versus jail reimbursement.
Senator Wadipes offered an amendment to change four line items so each would read $3,500,000, arguing an even split is the fairest approach to matching contract and reimbursement needs. She explained her rationale: “Jail reimbursement is to pay the jail's money back for prisoners from the state... Jail contracting is money that is paid to the counties to house our prisoners ... they've asked us to help them build their jails and contract with them.”
Senators who objected said the original prorated numbers had a rationale tied to prisoner counts and core rates. Supporters, including Senator Hilliard, said the amendment does not change the total amount but ensures more equitable allocation and makes a conference committee or rescission possible later if needed.
The clerk read the amendment into the record and senators voted to adopt it. The amendment was described in the record as changing lines in the bill so that four amounts read $3,500,000 each; the motion to amend carried, and the bill was amended on the floor.
Final outcome: After amendment and further floor action the Senate took final passage on HB2 under suspension of rules. Roll call recorded House Bill 2 as having received 26 yes votes, 1 nay, and 2 absent; the bill passed the Senate and was returned to the House for its further action because it had been amended in the Senate.
Next steps: Because the House and Senate made changes to the same fiscal measures, leadership appointed a conference committee to resolve imbalances and reconcile line items before final enrollment.
