Report Title:

Propose Amendment to Article VII of the Constitution of the State

Description:

Proposes a constitutional amendment to clarify that the Legislature is required to: (1) comply with balanced budget requirements; and (2) use the latest Council on Revenues estimates to enact a balanced budget.

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

2875

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2004

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

PROPOSING AMENDMENTS TO ARTICLE VII OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE

STATE OF HAWAII, RELATING TO BALANCED BUDGET REQUIREMENTS.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The purpose of this Act is to propose amendments to sections 5, 7, and 9 of article VII of the Constitution of the State of Hawaii to clarify that the legislature is required to enact a balanced budget using the latest council on revenues estimates.

SECTION 2. Article VII, section 5, of the Constitution of the State of Hawaii, is amended to read as follows:

"EXPENDITURE CONTROLS

Section 5. Provision for the control of the rate of expenditures of appropriated state moneys, and for the reduction of such expenditures under prescribed conditions, shall be made by law.

No public money shall be expended except pursuant to appropriations made by law. In no case shall general fund appropriations for any fiscal year in a fiscal biennium exceed the State's current estimated general fund revenues and unencumbered cash balances. General fund expenditures for any fiscal year shall not exceed the State's current general fund revenues and unencumbered cash balances, except when the governor publicly declares the public health, safety or welfare is threatened as provided by law. "

SECTION 3. Article VII, section 7, of the Constitution of the State of Hawaii is amended to read as follows:

"COUNCIL ON REVENUES

Section 7. There shall be established by law a council on revenues which shall prepare revenue estimates of the state government and shall report the estimates to the governor and the legislature at times provided by law. The estimates shall be considered by the governor in preparing the budget, recommending appropriations and revenues and controlling expenditures. The estimates shall be considered by the legislature in appropriating funds and enacting revenue measures. The governor and the legislature shall use the latest estimates prepared by the council as base estimates against which their revenue estimates shall be compared. All revenue estimates submitted by the council to the governor and the legislature shall be made public. If the legislature in appropriating funds and enacting revenue measures, or if the governor in preparing the budget or recommending appropriations, exceeds estimated current revenues and unencumbered cash balances due to proposed expenditures, this fact shall be made public including the reasons therefor."

SECTION 4. Article VII, section 9, of the Constitution of the State of Hawaii is amended to read as follows:

"LEGISLATIVE APPROPRIATIONS; PROCEDURES; EXPENDITURE CEILING

Section 9. In each regular session in an odd-numbered year, the legislature shall transmit to the governor an appropriation bill or bills providing for the anticipated total expenditures of the State for the ensuing fiscal biennium. No general appropriation bill or other bill appropriating money for any purpose shall be enacted if the appropriations contained therein, together with all other appropriations made for each fiscal year in the biennium, exceed current estimated revenues and unencumbered cash balances available to meet such appropriations during such fiscal period. In such session, no appropriation bill, except bills recommended by the governor for immediate passage, or to cover the expenses of the legislature, shall be passed on final reading until the bill authorizing operating expenditures for the ensuing fiscal biennium, to be known as the general appropriations bill, shall have been transmitted to the governor.

In each regular session in an even-numbered year, at such time as may be provided by law, the governor may submit to the legislature a bill to amend any appropriation for operating expenditures of the current fiscal biennium, to be known as the supplemental appropriations bill, and bills to amend any appropriations for capital expenditures of the current fiscal biennium, and at the same time the governor shall submit a bill or bills to provide for any added revenues or borrowings that such amendments may require. In each regular session in an even-numbered year, bills may be introduced in the legislature to amend any appropriation act or bond authorization act of the current fiscal biennium or prior fiscal periods. No bill appropriating money for any purpose shall be enacted if the appropriations contained therein, together with all other appropriations made for each fiscal year of the same fiscal period, exceed current estimated revenues and unencumbered cash balances available to meet such appropriations during such fiscal period. In any such session in which the legislature submits to the governor a supplemental appropriations bill, no other appropriation bill, except bills recommended by the governor for immediate passage, or to cover the expenses of the legislature, shall be passed on final reading until such supplemental appropriations bill shall have been transmitted to the governor."

SECTION 5. The question to be printed on the ballot shall be as follows:

"Shall the Legislature be required to enact a balanced budget using the latest council on revenues estimates?"

SECTION 6. New constitutional material is underscored. SECTION 7. This amendment shall take effect upon compliance with article XVII, section 3, of the Constitution of the State of Hawaii.

INTRODUCED BY:

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BY REQUEST