LFA outlines 'clean' base bill and 5% reduction task for Criminal Justice budget

Gary Sykes, Legislative Fiscal Analyst, opened the subcommittee’s budget review by describing a “clean” base bill for FY2027 that includes only ongoing items from the prior year and excludes one-time funding. “The default base bill that we prepared includes only those things that were ongoing from last year,” Sykes said, adding that the approach ensures government can continue to operate if the legislature does not agree on broader additions.

Sykes said the Executive Appropriations Committee (EAC) tasked each subcommittee with proposing a list of ongoing 5% reductions and a separate list of priority increases. For this subcommittee, the LFA identified an ongoing base of approximately $968,000,000 and a 5% target of roughly $48,000,000 in reductions. He described the staff’s approach as assembling agency-submitted options, applying independent analysis, and producing a combined “least bad” list for committee consideration.

Sykes highlighted items set aside at the EAC ‘red sheet,’ including compensation and Medicaid adjustments, and pointed members to resources—HB 6 text and the COBie compendium—where the base bill and LFA reduction options are posted. He also called attention to jail-reimbursement changes carried in the base documents and the need to consider statutory or rule changes for some options.

The presentation concluded with LFA staff offering to circulate the full 5% option list and inviting members to submit alternate official lists for consideration. The committee approved the meeting minutes by motion from Senator Owens and later adjourned after hearing all agency presentations.