Read a Georgia Budget & Policy Institute analysis on the FY 2009/10 budgets

See a federal budget overview at Childrensbudget.org

How does the Budget Process Work in Georgia?

A state's budget or spending plan is one of the strongest indicators of its priorities.At each phase of the budget process there are potential targets for advocacy efforts. The earlier advocates become involved in the process, however, the greater the chance of having a significant impact on budget decisions.

Many child advocates believe that the budget bill that passes each year is the most important piece of legislation for Georgias children, youth and families. The budget bill determines which programs and services are funded and in what areas of the state. Our state legislators and leaders can introduce and pass legislation that promises sweeping reform, but if dollars are not allocated to implement those policy decisions, there will be no reform. This is why child advocates need to educate themselves and become more involved in the state budget process in Georgia.

The budget process is year- round. The process actually begins with and is dependent upon the governors revenue estimate for the upcoming year. The Governors economic advisers usually prepare several possible revenue scenarios based on their assumptions about economic activity and tax collections.  The Governor then chooses one upon which to base his proposed budget. Georgia is required by law to have a balanced budget, so state spending cannot exceed the revenue estimate as set by the Governor. The state fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30.

Phase one of the budget begins in May as the various state departments begin to develop their budget recommendations for the upcoming fiscal year. Departments finalize their budget recommendations in August or September and forward them to the Office of Planning and Budget (OPB), the Governors budget arm.

Phase two is the period between September and mid-December when OPB examines department proposals and works with the governor to draft the executive branch version of the budget. The governors budget is not publicly released until the first week of the legislative session in January when the governor formally presents his/her budget recommendations to a joint session of the House and Senate.

Phase three is when the Legislature works to develop a final version of the budget that must then be signed by the governor. The legislative part of the budget process usually begins in late December or early January with budget hearings. State department heads present their recommendations to joint meetings of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. The legislature has its own advisors in the Legislative Budget Office, and both the House and Senate have small budget staffs of their own.

The House:  The actual budget bill is introduced in the House of Representatives. House Appropriations subcommittees hear testimony from department staff, citizens and advocates. The House version of the budget is finalized by the House Budget Subcommittee, often referred to as the Green Door Committee. Next the document is discussed and voted upon by the full House Appropriations Committee and it must then be voted upon by the full House of Representatives. The House floor budget debate typically takes a few hours, and although House members may offer amendments to the budget bill, there have been no instances in recent years when such attempts have been successful.

The Senate:  Once the budget bill passes the House, it is sent to the Senate, where the process is repeated. For the past two years, Senate budget leaders have begun work on the Senate version of the budget before the House version is completed and sent to the Senate. Senate Appropriations Subcommittees typically hold fewer hearings and there are not as many opportunities for public testimony on the Senate side.

Conference Committee:  Once the Senate has voted on the bill, House and Senate budget leaders begin meeting in conference committee to hammer out a final version of the budget. This step usually takes weeks. When an agreement is reached in conference committee, it must be voted upon by both the House and the Senate.

Governor:  The budget then goes to the governor, who has 40 days to sign the bill. In Georgia, the governor has line-item veto power and most recent governors have vetoed a handful of items in the budget.  The governors office issues a statement listing all vetoes with an explanation of the reasoning for each.

There are actually two state budgets passed during each legislative session. The first is often called the big budget. In Georgia, legislators also adopt an amended budget, sometimes referred to inaccurately as the supplemental budget that makes adjustments to the current fiscal year. In better economic times, the amended budget was a way to spend extra dollars over and above the governors revenue estimate. Many governors adopted a conservative revenue estimate for the upcoming fiscal year with the expectation that actual revenues collected would provide extra dollars that could be spent. The amended budget was most often used to fund bricks and mortar items such as buildings and roads.  In recent years when state revenues have declined, there has been no surplus to spend, and the amended budget has been used to cut the current budget. The amended budget goes through the same process as the big budget, beginning with state departments, and moving through OPB and the Legislature. The governor will present a recommended amended budget and the Legislature has always begun and completed work on the amended budget before taking up the big budget. When passed, the amended budget covers the period from April 1 through June 30 of the current year.

Although legislators definitely play a key role in the budget process, in Georgia it is the governor that usually has the greatest influence over the state budget.  Most governors get about 95% of what they recommend in the way of cuts and additions to the budget. That leaves some money for pet projects of key legislative leaders in the House and Senate, but the total amount of dollars spent on such items, often called pork, has declined in recent years due to the economic downturn.