Utah state budget
From Sunshine Review
Contents |
Utah has not been immune to the economic downturn, but the recession has not impacted Utah as dramatically as other parts of the United States. The state of Utah is expected to face a $700 million shortfall at the end of the 2010 fiscal year. In order to reduce the budget shortfall, Gov. Gary Herbert has called for state agencies to cut spending by 3% - an estimated $39 million.[1]
The FY 2010 budget passed by Utah State Legislature and signed by Gov. Jon Huntsman (Gov. Huntsman resigned in August 2009 to become Ambassador to China, and was replaced by Gov. Gary R. Herbert)[2] projects state tax revenue will be down 17.8 percent from the FY 2009 original projection ($949 million). Utah is expected to receive $1.4 billion ARRA funds through a variety of programs, including $498 million for State Fiscal Stabilization. For additional budget stabilization, Utah maintains the Budget Reserve Fund (Rainy Day Fund) and Education Budget Reserve Fund (Education Rainy Day Fund) with a combined total balance of $418.5 million.[3]
Utah faced a $872 million revenue drop for FY 2009 and $956 million for FY 2010, making general state government cuts of 16% and using $391 million of federal money in FY 2009 and $782.5 million in 2010 to balance its budget.[4]
Utah gained national attention in 2008, being the first state government in the nation to adopt a 40-hour, four-day work week as a cost saving measure to address state revenue declines.[5]
Utah's total budget for FY 2010 is $11.2 billion, $4.4 billion of which is the General Fund/Education Fund. The state's historical General Fund/Education Fund budgets have been:[6]
| FY 2007 | FY 2008 | FY 2009 Original | FY 2009 Adjusted | FY 2010 |
| $5.3 billion | $5.2 billion | $5.3 billion | $4.5 billion | $4.4 billion |
[edit] Budget Background
Utah's fiscal year begins July 1 and ends June 30 of the following year. Every year the state's agencies submit budget requests along with past expenditures and allocations. Usually by December the Governor develops a budget recommendation which is then delivered to the Legislature. Following a series of hearings and discussions the Senate and the House make any necessary changes before approving the final bill. Once the appropriations bills are debated and the Legislature as a whole passes them the bills are signed by the Governor. [7]
By law, the Governor, within three days after the convening of the Legislature in the annual general session, submits a budget for the ensuing fiscal year. However, at least 34 days before the submission of any budget, the Governor delivers a confidential draft copy of his proposed budget recommendations.[8]
John Nixon is Executive Director of the Utah Governor's Office of Planning and Budget (GOPB). The Budget section under the direction of Phillip Jeffery, provides budgetary analyses, reviews program plans and budget details, and prepares budget detail for the annual Governor's Budget Recommendation to the Utah State Legislature. At the conclusion of each general session, analysts summarize appropriations and monitor expenditures throughout the year.[9]
- In March 2008 the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) presented a report, Rich States, Poor States, that stated that Utah's low taxes and controlled spending mean it's primed for prosperity. "The economic growth really, really shows that limited government and low taxes are the way to prosper in this world," said Jonathan Williams, ALEC's director of tax and fiscal policy task force and co-author of the report. [10]
[edit] Budget figures
The following table provides a history of Utah's expenditures and gross domestic product (GDP).
| Fiscal Year | Expenditures (billions) | GDP (billions) |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | $13.0 [11] | $67.6 [11] |
| 2001 | $14.3 [11] | $70.1 [11] |
| 2002 | $15.5 [11] | $72.7 [11] |
| 2003 | $16.1 [11] | $75.4 [11] |
| 2004 | $16.7 [11] | $80.9 [11] |
| 2005 | $17.3 [11] | $88.9 [11] |
| 2006 | $18.5 [11] | $98.0 [11] |
| 2007 | $19.9 [11] | $105.7 [11] |
| 2008 | $21.3 [11] | $114.0 [11] |
| 2009 | $22.8* [11] | $122.9* [11] |
- NOTE: The figures for FY 2009 won't be finalized until the end of the fiscal year.
- See Utah state budget (2008-2009) for more information.
[edit] Accounting Principles
The Utah Office of the State Auditor is responsible for state and local audits. The Financial Audit Division is responsible for auditing all state departments, agencies and colleges and universities. The Local Government Division ensures uniform accounting, budgeting, and financial reporting by Utah's local governments. Audit reports for the current year and two prior years are available online. Older reports not listed on their Web site may be obtained by emailing: lsiebenhaar@utah.gov. Auston Johnson has been State Auditor since July 1995 and was re-elected for a four-year term starting January 1, 2009.[12]
The Institute for Truth in Accounting (IFTA) rates Utah “Timely” in filing the state’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) – The annual report of state and local governmental entities. IFTA rated 22 states timely, 22 states tardy, and 6 states as worst. IFTA does not consider Utah's CAFRs, and those of the other states, to be accurate representations of the state’s financial condition because the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) basis does not include significant liabilities for the pension plans and for other post employment benefits, such as health care.[13] Utah's CAFRs are a publication of the Utah Division of Finance (DAF), a division within the Utah State Department of Administrative Services (DAS). Kimberly K. Hood is Executive Director of the DAS, and John Reidhead is the Director of the Division of Finance, Utah's chief fiscal officer and responsible for exercising accounting control over state departments and agencies except institutions of higher education. DAF responsibilities include:[14]
- Procedures for the approval and allocation of funds
- Accounting control over fund assets
- Approval of proposed expenditures
The Department of Administrative Services (DAS) was created by the Forty-fourth Legislature in March 1981 with passage of the Administrative Services Act. This action was a result of an organizational study of state administrative services by the Governor's Committee on Executive Reorganization (Agency #357).[15]
| Credit Rating | Fitch | Moody's | S&P |
| Utah[16] | AAA | Aaa | AAA |
[edit] Accounting transparency checklist
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[edit] The good
- The website has Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports (CAFR) dating back to 2007.[17]
- An independent auditor’s report is published on page 12 of the document.[18]
- It provides supplements to the budget workup, starting on page 118.
- The budget is posted using organized and consistent methods of financial reporting.
- Utah law requires a balanced budget and a deficit is forbidden.[19]
- It includes all costs incurred by the government, including long-term liabilities, starting on page 214 of the document.[18]
- The CAFR compares estimated and actual budgetary numbers, such as on page 140 of the document.[18]
- The Utah office was timely in submitting the budget.
[edit] The bad
- The CAFR is posted in a PDF format, so it’s not searchable online.
- The earliest CAFR posted is 2007.
In 2008, the Utah State Legislature passed SB 38. The bill proposed the availability of public financial information on the Internet. Additionally it modified notice requirements of the Open and Public Meetings Act. [20] As noted below, Utah's spending transparency website was launched in May 2009.
- 05/22/09: Transparency Site Launched in Utah:
Spending transparency continues to spread, this week with the launch of Utah's new spending database. This site reveals some of the state's finances and includes expenditure and revenue data beginning with fiscal year 2009. In the next twelve months even more data will be put online, data such as financials for institutions of higher education, school districts, and charter schools. Overseeing this site and its contents are the Utah Transparency Advisory Board and the Department of Administrative Services (Division of Finance). The site does not post state employee salaries, although some information about Utah's employees' salaries is already available here.
Utah Senate Bill 38 (2008), Transparency in Government mandated the creation of a publicly available spending database by May 15, 2009. To learn more about SB 38, read the Sutherland Institute's policy analysis, "Transparency in Government."
The following table is helpful in evaluating the level of transparency provided by Utah's spending and transparency database:
| State Database | Searchability | Grants | Contracts | Line Item Expenditures | Dept/Agency Budgets | Public Employee Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transparent Utah |  |  | | | | |
Although this database does not list information about Utah's contracts, that information has been made available here.
[edit] Budget transparency
[edit] Website evaluation
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Utah.gov is the website for the state of Utah.
- Main article: Evaluation of state websites
[edit] The good
- Site has a search function and is fairly easy to navigate.
- State employee contact information can be found in a searchable database.[21] Elected officials are listed under respective office.[22]
- Budget is published.[23]
- Annual financial audits are published.[24]
- State tax information is posted.[25]
- Current state contracts are available in a searchable database.[26]
- Includes searchable database of registered lobbyist and lobbying organizations.[27]
[edit] The bad
- Does not provide information on agency lobbying contracts.
- Information on state ethics is not provided.
- Some agencies have forms for requesting public records under the Utah Government Records Access and Management Act, but there is no comprehensive information.[28]
[edit] Economic Stimulus Transparency
- The American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan of 2009 designated $787 billion to be spent throughout the U.S. Of that $787 billion stimulus package, it is estimated that 69%, or over $541 billion, will be administered by state governments.[29]
- Utah will receive an estimated $1,770,714,250.[30]
[edit] Error in ARRP
On November 16 and 17, 2009, many errors were found in the $747 billion plan that showed the plan set aside money for districts that do not exist. According to Recovery.gov, the plan shows its funds will go to 884 Congressional Districts, though there are only 435.[31][32]
The stimulus package sent nearly $1.7 million to four congressional districts in Utah that do not exist, according to the ARRP tracking website. Utah has only 3 congressional districts, saw the majority of that money distributed to two non-existent Districts. District 4 was given more than $1.1 million and District 00, a label reserved for states with only one congressman, received nearly $540,000.
District 00 claimed to create or save 26 jobs, while District 4 did not produce any jobs, despite twice the amount of funding.[33]
[edit] See Also
[edit] External links
- The Sutherland Institute
- Utah Waste Busters
- Utah Taxpayers Association
- Governor's Office of Planning and Budget
- Local government budget reports
- Model transparency legislation from the American Legislative Exchange Council is available at this link.
- Department of Finance, Utah Budget
- [Department of Finance, Utah Budget 2009-2010]
- Utah State Legislature
- Utah State and Local Spending 1992-2010 Charts
- Utah
- Utah: State and Local Government on the Net
- National Center for State Courts: Budget Processes for State Budgets 2009
- US Census Bureau: State and Local Government Finances (Utah)
- Utah State Archives Catalog
[edit] Additional reading
[edit] References
- ↑ KCPW,"Governor Herbert Unveils Budget," December 11, 2009
- ↑ Ballotpedia, "Jon Huntsmans," retrieved November 16, 2009
- ↑ , "Fiscal Year 2010 Fiscal Year 2009 Supplementals," June 2009
- ↑ Governor's Office of Planning and Budget, "Utah FY2009 Post Session Revenue Review," April 20, 2009
- ↑ Associated Press, "4-day week seems to work well for Utah: Other states show interest in savings," March 1, 2009
- ↑ , "Fiscal Year 2010 Fiscal Year 2009 Supplementals," June 2009
- ↑ Governor's Office of Planning and Budget,"Budget Process," retrieved April 7,2009
- ↑ National Association of Budget Officers, "Budget Processes in the States," 2008
- ↑ Utah Governor's Office of Planning and Budget Web site, retrieved November 16, 2009
- ↑ Salt Lake Tribune,"Report says Utah's economy ready to charge," March 17,2009
- ↑ 11.00 11.01 11.02 11.03 11.04 11.05 11.06 11.07 11.08 11.09 11.10 11.11 11.12 11.13 11.14 11.15 11.16 11.17 11.18 11.19 US Government Spending,"Utah State and Local spending," retrieved April 7,2009
- ↑ Utah Office of the State Auditor Web site, retrieved November 16, 2009
- ↑ Institute for Truth in Accounting, “The Truth About Balanced Budgets—A Fifty State Study,” Page 35
- ↑ Utah State Department of Administrative Services Web site, retrieved November 16, 2009
- ↑ Utah State Department of Administrative Services Web site, retrieved November 16, 2009
- ↑ State of Indiana, “State Credit Ratings-as of June 24, 2009"
- ↑ Utah CAFRs
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Utah CAFR, 2009
- ↑ Institute for Truth in Accounting, Utah
- ↑ State of Utah, "Performance Elevated," retrieved April 7, 2009
- ↑ Employee Search
- ↑ Governor
- ↑ Budget
- ↑ CAFR
- ↑ Taxes
- ↑ Contracts
- ↑ Lobbying
- ↑ Search "Utah Government Records Access and Management Act
- ↑ National Taxpayers Union, "A Letter to the Nation's Governors: Ensure Transparency and Accountability by Posting Stimulus Expenditures Online," March 10, 2009
- ↑ Wall Street Journal,"Stimulus Spending by State," March 12,2009
- ↑ $6.4 Billion Stimulus goes to Phantom Districts, Watchdog.org, November 17, 2009
- ↑ Stimulus Creates Jobs in Non-Existent Congressional Districts, Watchdog.org, November 16, 2009
- ↑ Utah, Watchdog.org, November 17, 2009
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