Governor Bentley Sends General Fund Budget Back to Legislature with Executive Amendment Attached

Executive Amendment Makes Necessary Reductions to Balance Budget and Minimize Cuts in Essential State Services

MONTGOMERY—Governor Robert Bentley on Wednesday sent the Fiscal Year 2012 General Fund budget back to the Legislature with an executive amendment added to restore some funding for the Alabama Medicaid Agency.  Without the executive amendment, the General Fund is not balanced and cannot be signed.

“I’m disappointed in the General Fund budget that passed so I am sending it back to the Legislature with an executive amendment attached,” said Governor Bentley.  “In these difficult times, we must have a fiscally responsible budget that funds essential state services like Medicaid, which hundreds of thousands of Alabamians depend on everyday for medical services and access to medical care. We have worked to create a budget that allows Alabama to live within our financial means. I expect the Legislature to pass this General Fund budget with the executive amendment attached.”

The Executive Amendment adds approximately $3.5 million back to the Medicaid Agency to reduce the severity of the original cut. After federal matching funds are restored, Medicaid will receive approximately $10 million. In addition, Medicaid will have greater flexibility to manage its pharmacy program and ensure that Medical recipients continue to receive unlimited generic prescriptions every month.

The Executive Amendment also gives agencies like the Department of Senior Services and the Department of Corrections greater flexibility to manage their own budgets by removing restrictive language.