The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee voted unanimously to adopt the Economic Outlook and Revenue Assessment Committee’s recommended general fund revenue projection of $5,990,000,000 for fiscal year 2025, a motion moved by Senator Woodward and seconded in committee.

Keith Bybee, Division Manager of the Budget Policy Analysis Division, explained the two numbers before the committee: the ERAC recommendation for FY2025 at $5,990,000,000 and the governor’s recommended FY2025 figure of $5,947,000,000. Senator Woodward moved to use the ERAC number for setting state agency budgets; the committee recorded a combined total of 20 ayes, 0 nays (majority from both the House and Senate), and the motion passed.

The committee then turned to the FY2026 general fund revenue projection. Representative Penske moved that the committee adopt the Economic Outlook and Revenue Assessment Committee’s recommended FY2026 figure of $6,400,000,000. Senator Woodward offered a substitute motion recommending a $6,330,000,000 projection. The substitute motion passed in one chamber but did not secure the required majority in both chambers when votes were tallied across the House and Senate; committee staff reported a grand total of 8 ayes and 12 nays on the substitute. The committee then voted on the original $6.4 billion motion; the motion garnered a combined 14 ayes and 6 nays but failed to achieve a majority in both houses, so no FY2026 revenue projection was adopted and the vote on that decision was postponed for a future committee session.

Committee leadership reminded members that the committee’s operating practice is to send proposals to the floors only when a majority of both the House and the Senate on JFAC have endorsed a plan, and staff said the revenue selection for FY2026 will be revisited at another meeting.