An Act Requiring Long-range Budget Planning
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 1278
Committee: Appropriations and Financial Affairs
Sponsors: WOODBURY, MARTIN, BOWLES, CUMMINGS, DUDLEY, MILLETT, TARDY, BRENNAN, DA VIS, WESTON
Amends: 5 MRSA §1665, 5 MRSA §1666-B

Legislative Document 
No. 1278 
H.P.875 
House of Representatives, March 15,2005 
An Act Requiring Long-range Budget Planning 
Reference to the Committee on Appropriations and Financial Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative WOODBURY of Yarmouth. 
Cosponsored by Senator MARTIN of Aroostook and 
If/~ 
1J7.1i!Q£~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: BOWLES of Sanford, CUMMINGS of Portland, DUDLEY of Portland, 
MILLETT of Waterford, TARDY of Newport, Senators: BRENNAN of Cumberland, DA VIS 
of Piscataquis, WESTON of Waldo. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. I. 5 MRSA §1665, sub-§7, as repealed and replaced by PL 
1999, c. 127, Pt. A, §6 and affected by §7, is amended to read: 
7. 
General Fund and Highway Fund revenue and expenditure 
forecasts. 
By September 30th of each even-numbered year, the 
State Budget Officer shall prepare and deliver a report to the 
Governor, the Legislature and the joint standing committee of the 
Legislature having jurisdiction over appropriations and financial 
affairs containing a forecast of revenue and expenditures for the 
following sieaaiQm 
biennia. 
The 
forecast must 
assume 
the 
continuation 
of 
current 
laws 
and 
include 
reasonable 
and 
predictable estimates of growth in revenues 
and expenditures 
based 
on 
national 
and 
local 
trends 
and 
program 
operations. 
General 
Fund and Highway Fund 
revenue must be forecasted by 
income 
source 
as 
provided 
in 
chapter 
151-B. 
Expendi ture 
forecasts for the General Fund and the Highway Fund must be 
forecasted on the basis of current law and assumed inflation 
variables related to program operations. 
The forecast for the 
General Fund and the Highway Fund must be presented in a budget 
fund flow statement and a 
comparative statement showing each 
income source for revenue projections and expenditure estimates 
for each major program category. 
Sec. 2. 5 MRSA §1666-B is enacted to read: 
51666-B. 
Long-range budget plan 
The Governor or the Governor-elect, with the assistance of 
the State Budget Officer and based upon the forecast of revenue 
and expenditures prepared pursuant to section 1665, subsection 7, 
shall prepare 
a 
long range budget plan that encompasses 
the 
following 
biennia. 
The 
plan 
must 
be 
submitted 
to 
the 
Legislature at the same time as the biennial budg:et re'iIuired by 
section 1666. 
SUMMARY 
Current law requires the State Budget Officer to prepare a 
forecast 
of 
revenues 
and 
expenditures 
for 
the 
biennium 
immediately following the biennium in which 
the forecast is 
prepared. 
This bill extends the forecast to encompass the 6 
years following the current biennium and requires the Governor to 
use the forecast to develop a long-range budget plan for the 
following 3 biennia. 
The plan is submitted by the Governor to 
the Legislature along with the regular biennial budget.