Manchin says digest not aimed at bypassing him: Governor did not veto the money, but only the way it was to be spent

Legislative leaders don't believe this year's Budget Digest doesan end-run around Gov. Joe Manchin's line-item vetoes from when thebudget was passed, and Manchin tends to agree.

"I didn't veto the money," the governor pointed out last week. "Ivetoed the way in which the agencies were directed to spend themoney."

Among its more than 1,200 spending recommendations, the digestapproved last week restores language that Manchin had stripped fromthe budget bill when he signed it in April. Those sections hadoutlined how state agencies, particularly in higher education, wereto spend about $8.7 million in state funds.

Like the rest of the digest, agencies aren't bound to heed therestored language. Because it is approved after the actual budgetbill, and only by a small House-Senate committee, the digest cannotmandate spending. Nevertheless, past digest items have been routinelyhonored by state agencies and programs.

"This doesn't have the force of law, but it reiterates what themoney was meant for," House Finance Chairman Harold Michael, D-Hardy, said of the restored language Friday. "We really think thatthis is what the money was designated for in the first place."

The restored sections include some of the digest's priciest items,including $800,00 for the Blanchette Rockefeller NeurosciencesInstitute at West Virginia University, $795,597 for MarshallUniversity's Autism Training Center, and $500,000 for WVU's miningengineering program.

Still in his first year as governor, Manchin did not delete actualfunds from the budget bill as his predecessors have. Last year, Gov.Bob Wise vetoed $33.6 million from his final budget bill. With themoney gone, lawmakers did not attempt to bypass Wise's vetoes in thatyear's digest.

Manchin's wielding of the line-item veto created a quandary forlegislators, who consider oversight of the state's purse chief amongtheir constitutional duties.

"That money was in limbo. If it wasn't spent as it was intended,then how would it be spent?" Michael said. "(Manchin's) officialreasoning was that he wanted the agencies to decide how best to spendthe money. But we're the ones who tell the agencies how we want themoney spent."

Michael also sees Manchin's move as an attempt to telegraph toagencies that next year's budget process may be different. Manchinhimself noted Friday that he inherited a rough outline of this year'sbudget, which took effect July 1, from the previous administration.

"Next year's budget will be different," Manchin said. "I'm askingall the legislators, I'm asking everybody that's in government toprioritize every dollar we have first to go to debt reduction, thento tax relief, then infrastructure."

The budget digest is not a separate document, but rather a seriesof recommendations inserted throughout the budget legislation.Lawmakers tend to think of the digest as those recommendations thatreflect the requests they relay from constituents.

This year's digest includes $15.2 million worth of such requests.But besides the $8.7 million stemming from Manchin's vetoes, thedigest also recommends another $2.6 million in spending.

These reflect previous funding decisions by the Legislature, suchas for the state's new system of community and technical colleges.

This year's digest was delayed by a Supreme Court ruling in apending lawsuit. The December ruling had blocked any future digestspending a Kanawha Circuit review of the digest process.

The lawsuit questions the Legislature's spending priorities,citing its use of the digest as well as the governor's contingencyfund.

The Supreme Court removed its freeze on the digest in June. JudgeJim Stucky is slated to begin hearings on the review in August.