By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
The state economic outlook is looking much better than April, when the state forecast a $900 million budget deficit for FY2022.
Revenue reports continue to exceed projections, leaving Kansas with a more manageable $150 million deficit for legislators to deal with as they are set to begin their session on Monday, said Troy Waymaster, R-Bunker Hill, and chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.
The better-than-expected fiscal forecast will likely mean Kansas schools will escape significant cuts this year, he said. The Legislature is bound by a plan approved by the Kansas Supreme Court after multiple school districts sued the state alleging inadequate funding.
The state could engage in some creative accounting delaying transfer to certain funds, as it has in the past, Waymaster said.
The state is not going to have a lot of money for additional spending in the coming year, he said. He is asking the chairmen of the other committees to look at their budgets and find areas that could be cut.
"We are going to have to be very analytical, and go back over the last couple of years and see where we had some increases in spending, whether that be in social services or health services," Waymaster said.
He added, "We need to look back and see, 'OK, we put extra money into this particular program. Was it warranted? Is it something we could possibly look at sizing down and have some sort of cost savings for the state of Kansas?' "
The governor will release her budget Tuesday as she is set to delivery her annual State of the State address that evening.
Waymaster acknowledged the upcoming session will look drastically different compared to years past.
Much of the state's business will be done virtually, although an in-person quorum will be required to finalize legislation.
Testimony will be done remotely and few, if any, non-elected officials or staff will be allowed in the Capitol. Committee rooms have been set up for social distancing of the members.
Waymaster said he anticipated little new legislation will be proposed this session, with the governing body focusing on only necessary business.
The state Finance Council has extended the state's emergency declaration until Jan. 26.
The governor supports mandatory contact tracing. While many Republicans in the Legislature, including Waymaster, support local control and regard contact tracing as a privacy issues.
"You can't have a blanket approach for the entire state, because every county is different and every county has responded to the pandemic in a different manner," Waymaster said.
Waymaster said he plans to pre-filed two bills that were introduced during the last session. One would govern the plugging of old oil and gas wells in the state (HB2022).
The other bill deals with benefits for service members and first responders during the pandemic.
Waymaster also has four other bills that he plans to introduce that will deal with rural economic development, primarily housing, throughout the state.
"We are entering into unprecedented times, as in the spring," Waymaster said. "As I have said in the issues facing the state in the last few years, although this one is kind of anomaly out there by itself, we'll get through it."