"State finance council approved $225 million in interim financing" by Statehouse Briefing / LJWorld.com

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State finance council approved $225 million in interim financing

2:25 p.m. -- council approves $225 million. Goossen tells the council that there was concern among bond raters about the earlier impasse.2:12 -- Goossen says there $4 million in the state general fund. He says $225 million in certificates are needed to pay off state expenses through mid-April until state taxes start flowing in. 2:07 -- Meeting is under way. Sebelius reads the state law on certificates of indebtedness. Budget director Duane Goossen lays out the state's cash-flow situation. 1:58 p.m. -- Legislative staff, media starting to fill up the room. It will probably start at 2 p.m. legislative time, which means around 2:15 p.m. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has called a meeting of the State Finance Council for consideration of $225 million in certificates of indebtedness, which are loans from various state funds to the general fund. Sebelius says the move is needed to pay state employees, income tax refunds and Medicaid services during a low cash-flow period. The issue exploded earlier this week when Republican legislative leaders refused to agree to the certificates until Sebelius, a Democrat, signed a budget cutting bill. Sebelius signed the bill Tuesday, although she struck several Republican cuts with her line-item veto. The State Finance Council includes Sebelius and eight legislative leaders; six of whom are Republicans. The meeting is being held in room 535-North in the Statehouse. I'll be updating this as the meeting gets under way.

By Scott Rothschild

February 18, 2009

Statehouse Briefing