1     
BUDGET RESERVE ACCOUNT AMENDMENTS

2     
2015 GENERAL SESSION

3     
STATE OF UTAH

4     
Chief Sponsor: Dean Sanpei

5     
Senate Sponsor: Lyle W. Hillyard

6     

7     LONG TITLE
8     General Description:
9          This bill modifies provisions of the Budgetary Procedures Act relating to budget-related
10     restricted accounts.
11     Highlighted Provisions:
12          This bill:
13          ▸     addresses the transfer limit for the General Fund Budget Reserve Account and the
14     Education Fund Budget Reserve Account.
15     Money Appropriated in this Bill:
16          None
17     Other Special Clauses:
18          None
19     Utah Code Sections Affected:
20     AMENDS:
21          63J-1-312, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2012, Chapter 141
22          63J-1-313, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2012, Chapter 141
23     

24     Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
25          Section 1. Section 63J-1-312 is amended to read:
26          63J-1-312. Establishing a General Fund Budget Reserve Account -- Providing for
27     deposits and expenditures from the account -- Providing for interest generated by the

28     account.
29          (1) As used in this section:
30          (a) "Education Fund budget deficit" means a situation where appropriations made by
31     the Legislature from the Education Fund for a fiscal year exceed the estimated revenues
32     adopted by the Executive Appropriations Committee of the Legislature for the Education Fund
33     in that fiscal year.
34          (b) "General Fund appropriations" means the sum of the spending authority for a fiscal
35     year that is:
36          (i) granted by the Legislature in all appropriation acts and bills; and
37          (ii) identified as coming from the General Fund.
38          (c) "General Fund budget deficit" means a situation where General Fund appropriations
39     made by the Legislature for a fiscal year exceed the estimated revenues adopted by the
40     Executive Appropriations Committee of the Legislature for the General Fund in that fiscal year.
41          (d) "General Fund revenue surplus" means a situation where actual General Fund
42     revenues collected in a completed fiscal year exceed the estimated revenues for the General
43     Fund for that fiscal year that were adopted by the Executive Appropriations Committee of the
44     Legislature.
45          (e) "Operating deficit" means that, at the end of the fiscal year, the unassigned fund
46     balance in the General Fund is less than zero.
47          (2) There is created within the General Fund a restricted account to be known as the
48     General Fund Budget Reserve Account, which is designated to receive the legislative
49     appropriations and the surplus revenue required to be deposited into the account by this section.
50          (3) (a) (i) Except as provided in Subsection (3)(a)(ii), at the end of any fiscal year in
51     which the Division of Finance, in consultation with the Legislative Fiscal Analyst and in
52     conjunction with the completion of the annual audit by the state auditor, determines that there
53     is a General Fund revenue surplus, the Division of Finance shall transfer 25% of the General
54     Fund revenue surplus to the General Fund Budget Reserve Account.
55          (ii) If the transfer of 25% of the General Fund revenue surplus to the General Fund
56     Budget Reserve Account would cause the balance in the account to exceed [8%] 9% of General
57     Fund appropriations for the fiscal year in which the revenue surplus occurred, the Division of
58     Finance shall transfer only those funds necessary to ensure that the balance in the account

59     equals [8%] 9% of General Fund appropriations for the fiscal year in which the General Fund
60     revenue surplus occurred.
61          (iii) The Division of Finance shall calculate the amount to be transferred under this
62     Subsection (3)(a):
63          (A) after making the transfer of General Fund revenue surplus to the Medicaid Growth
64     Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account, as provided in Section 63J-1-315;
65          (B) before transferring from the General Fund revenue surplus any other year-end
66     contingency appropriations, year-end set-asides, or other year-end transfers required by law;
67     and
68          (C) excluding any direct legislative appropriation made to the General Fund Budget
69     Reserve Account for the fiscal year.
70          (b) (i) Except as provided in Subsection (3)(b)(ii), in addition to Subsection (3)(a)(i), if
71     a General Fund revenue surplus exists and if, within the last 10 years, the Legislature has
72     appropriated any money from the General Fund Budget Reserve Account that has not been
73     replaced by appropriation or as provided in this Subsection (3)(b), the Division of Finance shall
74     transfer up to 25% more of the General Fund revenue surplus to the General Fund Budget
75     Reserve Account to replace the amounts appropriated, until direct legislative appropriations, if
76     any, and transfers from the General Fund revenue surplus under this Subsection (3)(b) have
77     replaced the appropriations from the account.
78          (ii) If the transfer under Subsection (3)(b)(i) would cause the balance in the account to
79     exceed [8%] 9% of General Fund appropriations for the fiscal year in which the revenue
80     surplus occurred, the Division of Finance shall transfer only those funds necessary to ensure
81     that the balance in the account equals [8%] 9% of General Fund appropriations for the fiscal
82     year in which the revenue surplus occurred.
83          (iii) The Division of Finance shall calculate the amount to be transferred under this
84     Subsection (3)(b):
85          (A) after making the transfer of General Fund revenue surplus to the Medicaid Growth
86     Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account, as provided in Section 63J-1-315;
87          (B) before transferring from the General Fund revenue surplus any other year-end
88     contingency appropriations, year-end set-asides, or other year-end transfers required by law;
89     and

90          (C) excluding any direct legislative appropriation made to the General Fund Budget
91     Reserve Account for the fiscal year.
92          (c) For appropriations made by the Legislature to the General Fund Budget Reserve
93     Account, the Division of Finance shall treat those appropriations, unless otherwise specified in
94     the appropriation, as replacement funds for appropriations made from the account if funds were
95     appropriated from the General Fund Budget Reserve Account within the past 10 years and have
96     not yet been replaced.
97          (4) The Legislature may appropriate money from the General Fund Budget Reserve
98     Account only to:
99          (a) resolve a General Fund budget deficit, for the fiscal year in which the General Fund
100     budget deficit occurs;
101          (b) pay some or all of state settlement agreements approved under Title 63G, Chapter
102     10, State Settlement Agreements Act;
103          (c) pay retroactive tax refunds; or
104          (d) resolve an Education Fund budget deficit.
105          (5) Interest generated from investments of money in the General Fund Budget Reserve
106     Account shall be deposited into the General Fund.
107          Section 2. Section 63J-1-313 is amended to read:
108          63J-1-313. Establishing an Education Budget Reserve Account -- Providing for
109     deposits and expenditures from the account -- Providing for interest generated by the
110     account.
111          (1) As used in this section:
112          (a) "Education Fund appropriations" means the sum of the spending authority for a
113     fiscal year that is:
114          (i) granted by the Legislature in all appropriation acts and bills; and
115          (ii) identified as coming from the Education Fund.
116          (b) "Education Fund budget deficit" means a situation where appropriations made by
117     the Legislature from the Education Fund for a fiscal year exceed the estimated revenues
118     adopted by the Executive Appropriations Committee of the Legislature for the Education Fund
119     in that fiscal year.
120          (c) "Education Fund revenue surplus" means a situation where actual Education Fund

121     revenues collected in a completed fiscal year exceed the estimated revenues for the Education
122     Fund in that fiscal year that were adopted by the Executive Appropriations Committee of the
123     Legislature.
124          (d) "Operating deficit" means that, at the end of the fiscal year, the unassigned fund
125     balance in the Education Fund is less than zero.
126          (2) There is created within the Education Fund a restricted account to be known as the
127     Education Fund Budget Reserve Account, which is designated to receive the legislative
128     appropriations and the surplus revenue required to be deposited into the account by this section.
129          (3) (a) (i) Except as provided in Subsection (3)(a)(ii), at the end of any fiscal year in
130     which the Division of Finance, in consultation with the Legislative Fiscal Analyst and in
131     conjunction with the completion of the annual audit by the state auditor, determines that there
132     is an Education Fund revenue surplus, the Division of Finance shall transfer 25% of the
133     Education Fund revenue surplus to the Education Fund Budget Reserve Account.
134          (ii) If the transfer of 25% of the Education Fund revenue surplus to the Education Fund
135     Budget Reserve Account under Subsection (3)(a)(i) would cause the balance in the account to
136     exceed [9%] 11% of Education Fund appropriations for the fiscal year in which the Education
137     Fund revenue surplus occurred, the Division of Finance shall transfer only those funds
138     necessary to ensure that the balance in the account equals [9%] 11% of the Education Fund
139     appropriations for the fiscal year in which the Education Fund revenue surplus occurred.
140          (iii) The Division of Finance shall calculate the amount to be transferred under this
141     Subsection (3)(a):
142          (A) before transferring from the Education Fund revenue surplus any other year-end
143     contingency appropriations, year-end set-asides, or other year-end transfers required by law;
144     and
145          (B) excluding any direct legislative appropriation made to the Education Fund Budget
146     Reserve Account for the fiscal year.
147          (b) (i) Except as provided in Subsection (3)(b)(ii), in addition to Subsection (3)(a)(i), if
148     an Education Fund revenue surplus exists and if, within the last 10 years, the Legislature has
149     appropriated any money from the Education Fund Budget Reserve Account that has not been
150     replaced by appropriation or as provided in this Subsection (3)(b), the Division of Finance shall
151     transfer up to 25% more of the Education Fund revenue surplus to the Education Fund Budget

152     Reserve Account to replace the amounts appropriated, until direct legislative appropriations, if
153     any, and transfers from the Education Fund revenue surplus under this Subsection (3)(b) have
154     replaced the appropriations from the account.
155          (ii) If the transfer under Subsection (3)(b)(i) would cause the balance in the account to
156     exceed [9%] 11% of Education Fund appropriations for the fiscal year in which the Education
157     Fund revenue surplus occurred, the Division of Finance shall transfer only those funds
158     necessary to ensure that the balance in the account equals [9%] 11% of Education Fund
159     appropriations for the fiscal year in which the revenue surplus occurred.
160          (iii) The Division of Finance shall calculate the amount to be transferred under this
161     Subsection (3)(b):
162          (A) before transferring from the Education Fund revenue surplus any other year-end
163     contingency appropriations, year-end set-asides, or other year-end transfers required by law;
164     and
165          (B) excluding any direct legislative appropriation made to the Education Fund Budget
166     Reserve Account for the fiscal year.
167          (c) For appropriations made by the Legislature to the Education Fund Budget Reserve
168     Account, the Division of Finance shall treat those appropriations, unless specified otherwise in
169     the appropriation, as replacement funds for appropriations made from the account if funds were
170     appropriated from the account within the past 10 years and have not yet been replaced.
171          (4) Notwithstanding Subsection (3), if, at the end of a fiscal year, the Division of
172     Finance determines that an operating deficit exists, the Division of Finance may reduce the
173     transfer to the Education Fund Budget Reserve Account by the amount necessary to eliminate
174     the operating deficit.
175          (5) The Legislature may appropriate money from the Education Fund Budget Reserve
176     Account only to resolve an Education Fund budget deficit.
177          (6) Interest generated from investments of money in the Education Fund Budget
178     Reserve Account shall be deposited into the Education Fund.







Legislative Review Note
     as of 2-12-15 12:49 PM


Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel