Supplemental money needed to pay the bills

Legislative money committees spent most of this week processing what are known as supplemental appropriations.

Those are added funding needed to get through the rest of this budget cycle caused by unanticipated increases in costs for a variety of reasons.

This year’s list is, so far, shorter than in many previous sessions. But a couple of the shortfalls are dramatically larger than usual.

The biggest supplemental is owed to the Distributive School Account that funds K-12 education caused by an unexpected increase in student enrollment above and beyond what has been budgeted in both the 2014 and 2015 fiscal years — primarily in Clark County.

Statute requires the state provide the per-student funding for all those new students. SB429 says that will require a General Fund appropriation of $77.7 million.

Beyond that, agencies have asked for more than $3.18 million for a grand total of more than $80 million to balance the books and close out the current budget cycle.

The next largest amount sought to balance the books is $1.2 million to cover a shortfall in the Inmate Welfare Account to cover prison medical care for this fiscal year.

The Supreme Court has also filed for a big supplemental — $588,000 to make up a shortfall caused by declining administrative assessment revenues from, primarily, traffic court citations around the state, that support the judicial system.

Those assessments, along with others added to the price of every traffic ticket are what make even a basic speeding ticket — formerly a $25 fine — into a $100 fine.

Chief Justice Jim Hardesty told committee members law enforcement priorities have changed and street cops and troopers just aren’t writing nearly as many tickets as they used to. The Supreme Court also had a $5,000 supplemental lawmakers have already passed to cover unexpected expenses incurred by the Judicial Selection Commission to fill vacant judgeships.

Hardesty actually told lawmakers without the supplemental money the Supreme Court would have to shut its doors May 1 — although he conceded half jokingly some people would see that as a positive.

The Department of Motor Vehicles is asking in SB470 for a total of $375,307 to finish out this biennium. A large share of that is the projected credit card fees DMV must pay credit card companies when customers pay with plastic.

The Department of the Military has requested $303,867 to cover added military leave costs not eligible for federal reimbursement.

The Attorney General needs $169,000 to cover a shortfall caused by higher extradition costs incurred by the extradition coordinator’s office.

The Lieutenant Governor’s office is also seeking a supplemental — $25,887 primarily to cover travel costs for Lt. Gov. Mark Hutchison. Hutchison lives in Las Vegas and is entitled to costs of office related travel between Carson City and Las Vegas. The need hadn’t been anticipated because the former lieutenant governor, Brian Krolicki, lives in the north and didn’t receive travel costs during session.

The Highway Patrol is asking for $20,000 to make up a deficit in costs related to visiting dignitary protection in fiscal 2013.

In addition, there are several bills in to cover one time costs of retirements, buy-outs and terminal leave owed long-term employees. Those individuals can cash out significant amounts of unused retirement and sick leave, leaving especially smaller agencies short and in need of a cash infusion.