Text: HSB00713                          Text: HSB00715
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House Study Bill 714

Bill Text

PAG LIN
  1  1    Section 1.  The following amendment to the Constitution of
  1  2 the State of Iowa is proposed:
  1  3    The Constitution of the State of Iowa is amended by adding
  1  4 the following new section to new Article XIII:  
  1  5                          ARTICLE XIII.
  1  6                     EXPENDITURE LIMITATION.
  1  7    GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURE LIMITATION.  SECTION 1.
  1  8    1.  For the purposes of this section:
  1  9    a.  "Adjusted revenue estimate" means the most recent
  1 10 revenue estimate determined before January 1, or a later and
  1 11 lesser revenue estimate determined before adjournment of the
  1 12 regular session of the General Assembly, for the general fund
  1 13 for the following fiscal year as determined by a revenue
  1 14 estimating conference which shall be established by the
  1 15 General Assembly by law, adjusted by subtracting estimated
  1 16 refunds payable from that estimated revenue and adding any
  1 17 available surplus in accordance with subsection 5.
  1 18    b.  "General fund" means the principal operating fund of
  1 19 the state which shall be established by the General Assembly
  1 20 by law.
  1 21    c.  "New revenues" means moneys which are received by the
  1 22 state due to increased tax rates or fees or newly created
  1 23 taxes or fees over and above those moneys which are received
  1 24 due to state taxes or fees which are in effect as of January 1
  1 25 following the most recent state revenue estimating conference.
  1 26 "New revenues" also includes moneys received by the general
  1 27 fund due to new transfers over and above those moneys received
  1 28 by the general fund due to transfers which are in effect as of
  1 29 January 1 following the most recent state revenue estimating
  1 30 conference.  The state revenue estimating conference shall
  1 31 determine the eligibility of transfers to the general fund
  1 32 which are to be considered as new revenue in determining the
  1 33 state general fund expenditure limitation.
  1 34    2.  A state general fund expenditure limitation is created
  1 35 and calculated in subsection 3, for each fiscal year beginning
  2  1 on or after July 1 following the effective date of this
  2  2 section.
  2  3    3.  Except as otherwise provided in this section, the state
  2  4 general fund expenditure limitation for a fiscal year shall be
  2  5 ninety-nine percent of the adjusted revenue estimate.
  2  6    4.  The state general fund expenditure limitation shall be
  2  7 used by the Governor in the preparation of the budget and by
  2  8 the General Assembly in the budget process.  If a new revenue
  2  9 source is proposed, the budget revenue projection used for
  2 10 that new revenue source for the period beginning on the
  2 11 effective date of the new revenue source and ending in the
  2 12 fiscal year in which the source is included in the adjusted
  2 13 revenue estimate shall be ninety-five percent of the amount
  2 14 remaining after subtracting estimated refunds payable from the
  2 15 projected revenue from that source.  If a new revenue source
  2 16 is established and implemented, the original state general
  2 17 fund expenditure limitation amount provided for in subsection
  2 18 3 shall be readjusted to include ninety-five percent of the
  2 19 estimated revenue from that source.
  2 20    5.  Any surplus existing at the end of a fiscal year which
  2 21 exceeds ten percent of the adjusted revenue estimate of that
  2 22 fiscal year shall be included in the adjusted revenue estimate
  2 23 for the following fiscal year.  Any surplus equal to ten
  2 24 percent or less of the adjusted revenue estimate of the fiscal
  2 25 year may be included in the adjusted revenue estimate for the
  2 26 following fiscal year if approved in a bill receiving the
  2 27 affirmative votes of at least three-fifths of all the members
  2 28 elected to each branch of the General Assembly.  For purposes
  2 29 of this section, "surplus" means the cumulative excess of
  2 30 revenues and other financing sources over expenditures and
  2 31 other financing uses for the general fund at the end of a
  2 32 fiscal year.
  2 33    6.  The scope of the state general fund expenditure
  2 34 limitation under subsection 3 shall not include federal funds,
  2 35 donations, constitutionally dedicated moneys, and moneys in
  3  1 expenditures from a state retirement system.
  3  2    7.  The Governor shall submit and the General Assembly
  3  3 shall pass a budget which does not exceed the state general
  3  4 fund expenditure limitation.
  3  5    8.  The Governor shall not submit and the General Assembly
  3  6 shall not pass a budget which in order to balance assumes
  3  7 reversion of any part of the total of the appropriations
  3  8 included in the budget.
  3  9    9.  The State shall use consistent standards, in accordance
  3 10 with generally accepted accounting principles, for all state
  3 11 budgeting and accounting purposes.
  3 12    10.  The General Assembly shall enact laws to implement
  3 13 this section.
  3 14    Sec. 2.  REFERRAL AND PUBLICATION.  The foregoing amendment
  3 15 to the Constitution of the State of Iowa is referred to the
  3 16 General Assembly to be chosen at the next general election for
  3 17 members of the General Assembly, and the Secretary of State is
  3 18 directed to cause the same to be published for three
  3 19 consecutive months previous to the date of that election as
  3 20 provided by law.  
  3 21                           EXPLANATION
  3 22    This resolution proposes an amendment within a new Article
  3 23 XIII to the Constitution of the State of Iowa which relates to
  3 24 state budgets.
  3 25    The amendment establishes a state general fund expenditure
  3 26 limitation.  The amount of the limitation is 99 percent of the
  3 27 adjusted revenue estimate.  The amendment defines adjusted
  3 28 revenue estimate and requires that the estimate be determined
  3 29 by a revenue estimating conference which is to be created by
  3 30 the General Assembly by law.  The amendment requires that the
  3 31 expenditure limitation be used by the Governor in preparation
  3 32 of the Governor's budget and by the General Assembly in the
  3 33 budget process.  The amendment also provides that, if a new
  3 34 revenue source is established and implemented, 95 percent of
  3 35 the estimate of that new revenue shall be included in the
  4  1 expenditure limitation.
  4  2    The amendment also provides that the amount of any surplus
  4  3 which exceeds an amount equal to 10 percent of the adjusted
  4  4 revenue estimate may be included in the adjusted revenue
  4  5 estimate for the following fiscal year.  Any surplus which is
  4  6 equal to 10 percent or less of the amount of the adjusted
  4  7 revenue estimate may be included in the following year's
  4  8 adjusted revenue estimate if use of those funds is approved by
  4  9 a three-fifths majority of all the members elected to each
  4 10 house of the General Assembly.  The amendment also requires
  4 11 the State to use generally accepted accounting principles for
  4 12 state budgeting and accounting purposes.  The amendment
  4 13 provides that the General Assembly shall enact laws to
  4 14 implement the amendment.
  4 15    The resolution, if adopted, would be referred to the next
  4 16 general assembly before being submitted to the electorate for
  4 17 ratification.  
  4 18 LSB 7100YC 79
  4 19 sc/sh/8
     

Text: HSB00713                          Text: HSB00715
Text: HSB00700 - HSB00799               Text: HSB Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index

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