By Eric Bradner, Evansville Courier & Press
INDIANAPOLIS - State lawmakers have two steps left to take today before the clock will start on bipartisan, legislative budget negotiations.
The Republican-led Senate is expected to pass its two-year, $28.5 billion budget. Then, the Democratic-controlled House will meet late this afternoon to dissent from that budget.
That will send top negotiators in both chambers into joint conference committee discussions, where they'll try to bridge their differences and broker a deal that can pass both the House and the Senate and also meet Gov. Mitch Daniels' muster.
On Monday, the Senate considered amendments to its budget proposal, and also altered a continuing resolution - introduced last week as a backup plan in case a budget doesn't pass in time - that would extend current state government spending levels in absence of a new spending plan.
Over minority Democrats' objections, the Senate amended the continuing resolution to last two years.
Democrats wanted it to cover only one month so lawmakers still would feel pressure to get a new budget done.
Republicans voted down a series of Democratic amendments, including one by Sen. Lindel Hume, D-Princeton, which would have given Vincennes University millions in bonding authority for building construction projects.
As they finished the amendment process, they solidified the third full budget proposal that exists during the current special session.
One was offered by Daniels; another passed the House last week. The Senate budget is very close to the governor's, though it makes a few more concessions to Democrats, especially regarding education spending.
Conference committee members will have one week to reach a deal before the current budget expires on June 30.
State lawmakers are meeting in an overtime session because they failed to agree on a new budget by the regular session's April 29 deadline for adjournment.
The only time Indiana hasn't had a budget was in the 1860s during the Civil War era. Republican Gov. Oliver Morton, a staunch ally of President Abraham Lincoln, regarded Democrats as confederate sympathizers and feared the party would try to overthrow him and join with Confederate secession efforts.
When the Democratic-led General Assembly responded to several unconstitutional moves by attempting to weaken Morton's control, the governor had his party's legislators flee the Capitol to prevent the General Assembly from attaining a quorum and being able to conduct business.
Morton raised private funds to finance state government and the war effort for two years, without the General Assembly's approval.
The nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency says special sessions now cost taxpayers at least $75,400 per week in transportation costs and legislative per diem pay.