Ala. Gov. Criticizes Stripped Down Budget With Cuts To Medicaid; Calif. Spending Plan Includes Boosts In Health Spending

The Associated Press: Bentley Calls Stripped-Down Alabama Budget 'Irresponsible'
Gov. Robert Bentley on Thursday lashed out at a committee-passed General Fund budget, calling it irresponsible and accusing lawmakers of indicating they don't care about the people of Alabama. The House Ways and Means General Fund Committee approved the stripped-down budget Thursday morning, with deep cuts to state agencies after lawmakers were unable to reach an agreement on tax bills to fill a fiscal shortfall. The vote comes after weeks of Bentley warning that cuts could cause the layoff of state employees, the end of some services for the mentally ill and the closure of state trooper posts, state parks and prison facilities. ... The committee-approved budget would cut funds to Medicaid, the Department of Mental Health, the Department of Human Resources and state prisons by 5 percent in total funding. (Chandler, 5/14)

Montgomery Advertiser: Bentley Promises Veto Of Austerity General Fund Budget
Gov. Robert Bentley promised Thursday to veto an austerity General Fund budget approved by a House committee earlier in the day, saying it would devastate the state. ... Virtually every state agency would see budget cuts of at least 9 percent. The proposal also includes cuts of 5 percent to the state's Medicaid Agency and Department of Corrections, which in the past have been shielded from budget cuts. If enacted, the budget could lead to layoffs of more than 1,000 state workers, severe cuts to Medicaid services — impacting more than 1 million Alabamians — and the consolidation of state prisons, which could exacerbate a dangerous prison overcrowding crisis. (Lyman, 5/14)

Al.com: Alabama House Panel Approves Budget Cutting Medicaid, Prisons, Mental Health
A state budget plan that would force cuts in Medicaid, mental health, prisons and other services was passed by a House of Representatives committee today after the chairman said there's little support for tax increases. Gov. Robert Bentley said he would veto the plan in its current form. "This budget is unworkable. It's irresponsible. It really hurts people," Bentley said. (Cason, 5/14)

The Associated Press: Gov. Brown Proposes Record $115.3 Billion Budget For California
Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday proposed a record $115.3 billion California spending plan that would send billions more to public schools, freeze in-state undergraduate tuition and establish a new state tax credit for the working poor. ... The budget also includes...$62 million to begin enrolling low-income immigrants in Medi-Cal, California’s version of Medicaid, on the assumption that President Barack Obama will prevail in a court battle over his executive order. (Lin, 5/14)

The San Jose Mercury News: Health And Social Service Advocates Cry Foul Over Brown's Revised Budget
Gov. Jerry Brown's revised budget would boost spending on health and social services by about $1.7 billion over the current year, but it left advocates screaming for more to restore cuts made during the Great Recession. (Richman, 5/14)

The Associated Press: Budget Gets A Boost From Improved State Revenue Forecast
Struggling to close hefty budget shortfalls, [Louisiana] lawmakers got an assist Thursday when the state income estimating panel added nearly $179 million to two years of financial forecasts. Action from the Revenue Estimating Conference was a welcome change for Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration and lawmakers. In the past year, the forecasting panel has made multiple downgrades to financial projections that forced cuts and short-term budget fixes. (DeSlatte, 5/14)

The Associated Press: NC Budget Decisions Aren't As Painful With $400M Cushion
North Carolina budget-writers aren't making as many cuts compared to other years since the Great Recession. It made for a less painful process as House Republicans rolled out Thursday portions of a spending plan for the next two years. Budget panels met to hear spending proposals for six categories of government, led by public education and health. Lawmakers offered amendments before subcommittees approved their proposals, with the last panel wrapping up early Thursday evening. (Robertson, 5/15)

The Associated Press: Committee Plans To Reject Governor's Family Care Plan
[Wisconsin] lawmakers plan to reject a proposal in Gov. Scott Walker's budget that would expand the state's Family Care program and end the IRIS program, the leaders of the Legislature's finance committee said Thursday. ... Family Care, a Medicaid program, provides managed long-term care for the elderly and disabled designed to keep them in their homes. About 41,000 people are enrolled in the program. IRIS, which stands for Include, Respect, I-Self-Direct, is a related long-term care program that provides self-directed assistance with bathing, dressing and other needs. About 11,000 people are enrolled in that program. Both programs are currently available in 57 of Wisconsin's 72 counties and are scheduled to expand to an additional seven counties this calendar year.