Stumbo Responds to Supreme Court Ruling on Budget Lawsuit

FRANKFORT, KY (May 19, 2005) - The Kentucky Supreme Court has upheld the Attorney General’s challenge to the Governor’s spending plan. The court notes that “the Attorney General initiated this action to prevent the Governor’s anticipated suspension of 153 statutes,” and finds that “the Governor could not suspend statutes even if he possessed ‘emergency’ or ‘inherent’ powers...”

The Court has firmly declared that “[t]he suspension of statutes is antithetical to the constitutional duty to ‘take care that the laws be faithfully executed’...[and] the suspension of any statutes by the Governor’s Public Services Continuation Plan was unconstitutional and void...” The Attorney General’s central goal in filing this legal challenge, to protect the separation of powers underlying our democratic form of government, has been fully achieved.

The Governor’s power to spend in the absence of a legislatively enacted budget is severely limited under this opinion. Only three categories of spending are permitted:

1. Where statutes plainly require appropriations even in the absence of a budget. Examples include payments by the Board of Claims, certain contract damage claims, and retirement system contributions. The vast majority of statutes do not provide for such appropriations.
2. Where the Kentucky Constitution requires an appropriation in the absence of a budget. Examples include elementary school funding, state prison funding, payment of pensions, registration of voters, and salaries for the Governor, legislature, constitutional offices, judges, Commonwealth’s Attorneys and sheriffs.
3. Where federal law requires the state to maintain a specific program. Examples include the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts.

The Court rejected the suggestion that a “continuation budget” could be implemented based on the last valid budget passed by the General Assembly. While Kentucky had a statute authorizing this procedure from 1918 until 1983, it is no longer in force. The Attorney General calls upon the General Assembly to re-enact such a statute to protect citizens from the dire effects of any future budget deadlock.