Purpose

• This bill aims to reduce state spending by cutting agency appropriations when job positions remain unfilled for a full year after they’re posted. The idea is to recover money from salaries and benefits that would have been paid if the position stayed vacant.

Main Provisions

• Unfilled positions and savings
  • For the general fund and nongeneral fund money used for agency operations, the state would reduce an agency’s appropriations by the amount of salary and benefits savings from any position that has not been filled within 12 months of the posting date.
  • This reduction applies only to positions that are posted during fiscal years 2025, 2026, or 2027.
• Timing of the reductions
  • The reductions are to be reflected as decreases in the agency’s base budget for fiscal years 2028 and 2029.
• Exclusion
  • The rule does not apply to positions that require law enforcement training.
• Reporting by the executive branch
  • The commissioner of management and budget must report to the chairs and ranking minority members of the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee about how much spending is reduced by each agency under this section.

Significance and Changes to Law

• Creates a new mechanism to curb spending by tying budget reductions to vacancies that last more than a year after posting.
• Establishes a clear deadline (12 months) for vacancy-related savings to trigger a budget reduction.
• Shifts future-year budgets (2028-2029) based on current vacancy savings.
• Adds an exemption for law enforcement training positions, which are not subject to this reduction rule.

Oversight and Reporting

• The executive-branch reporting requirement ensures legislators are informed about how much each agency saves through this vacancy-based reduction.

Effective Scope

• Applies to general fund and nongeneral fund appropriations for agency operations for the biennium ending June 30, 2027.
• Targets positions posted in fiscal years 2025, 2026, and 2027.

Relevant Terms - unfilled positions / vacancies - salary and benefits savings - general fund - nongeneral fund - agency operations - biennium ending June 30, 2027 - positions posted in fiscal years 2025, 2026, 2027 - base budgets for fiscal years 2028 and 2029 - law enforcement training (exemption) - commissioner of management and budget - reporting to chairs and ranking minority members - Senate Finance Committee - House Ways and Means Committee