GOP leaders worried that Herbert budget too rosy

SALT LAKE CITY — It didn't take too long — just over a weekend — for Utah GOP legislative leaders to worry that perhaps Gov. Gary Herbert was a bit too optimistic about the state government's financial situation.

While they accept state economists' tax revenue projections as currently estimated, Republican leaders will ask legislative budget-setting committees to trim Herbert's suggested budget for next year budget for next year by $100 million, at least to start with.

"It's much easier to backfill" with extra money "than it is to cut budgets further," said Senate Majority Leader Sheldon Killpack, R-Syracuse, after a five-hour closed Senate GOP caucus meeting Tuesday morning.

Later Tuesday, the Executive Appropriations Committee, made up of leaders of both political parties, both houses, officially sent out the word to the 10 budget subcommittees to trim Herbert's suggested budgets by $100 million.

"We agree this is a wise plan," said House Speaker Dave Clark, R-Santa Clara.

In short, the leaders voted to ask for a 4 percent cut in the current budget to make up a perceived $176 million shortfall (Herbert asked for 3 percent) and a 5 percent cut in fiscal 2011, which starts July 1.

Legislators will meet Jan. 12 and Jan. 20 in their budget committees to start the difficult process of trimming more money from the current budget year.

Why take $100 million off the top now?

Killpack and Senate President Michael Waddoups, R-Taylorsville, explained that revenue would come from capital-rich Utahns selling off some assets in 2010 in anticipation of the Democratically controlled federal government not extending former GOP President George W. Bush's capital gains tax cuts. That "would put around $100 million" in the state's 2010-11 budget, Killpack said.

GOP lawmakers "have some concern" about whether that $100 million will really be there, he said.

The action by the GOP legislative majority is not new and shouldn't be seen in any way as criticizing the budget Herbert put forward, the two Senate leaders said.

In fact, legislative bosses have acted similarly in recent budget-cutting years.

Last year, then-Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. suggested a budget that showed 12 percent state spending reductions. But GOP legislative leaders, while accepting Huntsman's tax revenue estimates, asked budget committees to actually trim 15 percent.