Bill > SB198

This bill proposes a constitutional amendment to Pennsylvania's state constitution that would establish a new provision for handling general appropriation bills if they are not passed by the June 30 constitutional deadline. Specifically, if the state budget is not enacted by June 30 in any given year, the bill mandates that state appropriations will automatically be maintained at 80% of the amounts specified in the most recent fiscal year's general appropriation act. The bill outlines a two-step process for implementing this constitutional amendment: first, the Secretary of the Commonwealth must advertise the proposed amendment after its initial passage by the General Assembly, and then repeat the advertising process after a second passage. Once these steps are completed, the amendment will be submitted to Pennsylvania's qualified voters for approval at the next eligible primary, general, or municipal election. The goal of this amendment appears to be ensuring continued government funding and preventing complete budget shutdowns if legislators fail to pass a new budget by the statutory deadline.