House Appropriations Committee advances FY27 budget, authorizes new and converted positions

The House Appropriations Committee met March 20 to review a line-by-line "position" spreadsheet and base budget changes for fiscal year 2027 and moved in a straw poll to approve the draft budget as presented.

Committee staff walked members through positions the committee added above the governor's recommendation and positions included in the governor's recommended budget. Among the items flagged as newly authorized above the governor's recommend were positions in the tax department (a business analyst tied to Act 73 work) and an additional staff attorney/investigator position for the Human Rights Commission. Staff said the treasurer's unclaimed property program technician position would be funded through unclaimed property and carry no general-fund impact, and a VPIC financial director 3 was proposed to accommodate the transfer of OPED responsibilities tied to H567, also without a general-fund impact.

The committee reviewed authorizations connected to implementation of the flood safety bill (Act 121), noting that of 15 positions originally authorized at the Agency of Natural Resources, 11 were funded and the budget under consideration would add two environmental engineer positions to bring funded roles to 13. Members also discussed conversions of limited-service positions to permanent status across agencies: the Attorney General's Office sought conversion for an assistant director of court diversion and pre-trial services and a home improvement specialist; the judiciary sought authorization to carry 26 previously authorized limited-service positions into base without additional funding because the positions had been funded in the base in earlier years.

Members asked for clarifications about whether new positions should come from the existing position pool or be added net-new; staff explained that taking positions from the pool preserves the net authorized headcount while creating new positions increases it. Committee members raised concern about highly specialized roles — notably in the treasurer's office — that may require hiring outside the pool due to classification and recruitment constraints.

Staff summarized base-budget line changes including updated pay-act numbers and targeted add-ons: $350,000 for defender general training and contract costs, $250,000 for judiciary-related sheriff court security contracts, and several health-care rate annualizations and global commitment matches that staff said amount to roughly $6.5 million in total appropriations when matched. Presenters described the overall net base increase in the draft at about $7.5 million.

After finishing the review, a member moved to approve the FY27 budget as reviewed; the motion was seconded and the clerk conducted a roll call in which the voting members present responded affirmatively. Committee staff said technical drafting and a few Monday follow-ups (including adjustments tied to previously passed bills and updated school budget numbers) remain; members were asked to be available over the weekend for final language work.

The committee did not finalize every technical placement during the meeting; staff committed to confirm several placements (for example, whether particular grants should be routed through the Attorney General’s Office or AHS) and to refine line descriptions (e.g., swapping labels for pre-trial supervision versus pre-trial services where necessary). The meeting concluded with the committee preparing to finalize the budget language on Monday.