The SB 1 conferees began their budget discussions around 5:30 p.m. on Saturday evening and spent the following seven hours working their way through the process of approving various Articles of the 2018-2019 Budget.
“White smoke has emerged from our conclave, and we have reached a consensus,” said Senate Finance Chairwoman Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound.
Although precise figures on the totals were not available at time of publication, it was reported that almost $1 billion will be tapped from the Rainy Day Fund (RDF), also known as the Economic Stabilization Fund (ESF), for one time expenses and an additional $1.8 billion comes from delaying a transfer of sales tax money to the State Highway Fund (SHF) by one month.
The conference committee decisions will need to be approved by both chambers before SB 1 will ultimately head to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk.
The supplemental appropriations bill is also on the move. The Senate Finance Committee voted out HB 2 on May 18 which appropriates roughly $1 billion in General Revenue for FY 16-17.