Last week the news on our state's novel paid family leave program is that it would be implemented through the budget, rising, by virtue of a roughly $6.2 million appropriation, like a phoenix out of the ashes of the failed implementation bills, HB 3305 and SB 6280.
This week the news has to be the dueling budgets between the House and the Senate in this regard. By virtue of an Appropriations Committee amendment, the House budget essentially defunded the paid leave program by placing its initial startup under the jurisdiction of the state's Information Services Board, with no new money. The effect of the amendment was basically to hold administration of the project in abeyance, leading to some heated floor debate across the aisle.
The Senate budget, released today, proposes to restore the $6.2 million appropriation from the general fund to the Employment Security Department.
The matter will be resolved in conference. Meanwhile, head-scratching is justified. Hard to disagree with the TNT's recent assessment of the situation.
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A reader with more budget savvy than me points out my characterizations above may have been a tad unnuanced:
The Senate doesn't "restore" it. It's just a different position from the House's. The change in each budget proposal is from the enacted budget, not from the other chamber's proposal.
The Appropriations amendment was by Rep. Ericks of the 42nd. He insists it is not "defunded," but that the same work will go forward through the IT pool. And indeed, so long as that proviso language is there, the item is not "essentially defunded." . . . Rep. Alexander offered an amendment to remove the proviso . . . It failed 38-57.
Fair correction concerning the effect of each chamber's striking amendments. Two different proposals, two different positions on the paid family leave program.
Certainly had Rep. Alexander's floor amendment passed, the program would have been unequivocally "defunded." I do think, though, that reasonable minds may differ about the practical consequence of the Ericks proviso. It locates potential funding within the 2007 appropriation to the state IT pool, but provides no new funding. It subjects disbursement of that funding to the approval of the Information Services Board. In effect, ESD must vie with other technology needs for priority within a limited pool of resources. They may or may not obtain some or all of their $6.2 million funding in this manner but it places a substantial bureaucratic obstacle in their path.
Not quite a strict "defund" but not the "easy" path program proponents expected either.
