March 18, 2004 - Submitted by Dale Amick - MTC Legislative Consultant

The Missouri Legislature entered its 10-day spring break Thursday without making much headway on writing a new state budget. 

The House Budget Committee is in the midst of preparing a new budget document for the full House to consider when it returns from spring break.

The House leadership is waiting to finalize a state budget version until more information is available on how much revenue will be coming into the state treasury in early April. Traditionally, the House approves its version of the new state budget before going on spring break, but not this year. 

When the legislature returns March 29, there will be six weeks left to approve a new  budget for the fiscal year beginning July l. That is a short time frame for the House and Senate to approve its own versions, then a joint conference committee to write the final draft. 

The House version still contains a 15-million-dollar budget for the Division of Tourism as recommended by the governor. One effort in the House Appropriations Committee for Economic Development to reduce that figure failed. Rep. Lanie Black, the committee chairman, repeatedly has said the Division of Tourism budget is not subject to reduction from the governor’s recommendation.

Some representatives wanted to take funds from the Division of Tourism and place them into the Missouri Arts Council budget. That move was defeated. But this week in the House Budget Committee, there was a move to add revenue from other sources to the Arts Council. 

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