"We're not there. We still have a lot of negotiations," he said. "This is not as much as it's going to take to do it all."

The House has already voted to take the sales tax off food by passing HB109. That bill is expected to turn up in the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee on Thursday, when it may be substituted with a bill giving Utahns a $75 income tax credit for sales taxes paid on food.

Sen. Curt Bramble, R-Provo, chairman of the committee, said the substitute bill likely will not yet specify the income level that will qualify for the tax break. Senators had talked about setting it at about $40,000.

The House does have its problems with the governor. The House GOP majority caucus voted for $230 million in tax cuts — even more than the $190 million or so that Huntsman's pair of proposals add up to, and the additional revenue only bolsters its arguments for the big tax cut.

"It makes a more valid case for a tax cut," House Majority Leader Jeff Alexander, R-Provo, said. "But what the mix of those tax cuts will be is still up for negotiation."

Rep. Ron Bigelow, R-West Valley, the majority budget manager, said because the caucus took its position before the new numbers came in, he doubted that position would change after today's caucus meeting.

"I suspect most people will not change," Bigelow said. "The fight will still be the same."

What the numbers will help clarify is how much of the many other state needs — such as the disability waiting list or classroom-size reductions — can be funded and still give a tax break, said Rep. Brad King, D-Price, the minority budget manager. The Democrats have not taken a formal caucus position on the size of tax cuts, although their budget proposals are very close to Huntsman's proposals.

"It's nice to have a clearer picture so we can better evaluate the plethora of tax-cut proposals," he said. "We can now see the real impacts on people."

No one dared complain about the amount of extra money available, even though it was less than hoped.

"This is good news," Valentine said. "The economy is still very, very vibrant. It's growing very rapidly."

Still, the Senate leader cautioned that the good times won't last forever.

"These are historic highs, however, so we know we can't sustain these figures," he said. "These are numbers that are very good. . . . But it doesn't say we can throw away our calculators."

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