Nancy Hicks, Lincoln Journal Star
October 13, 2009

The state's economic forecasting board will meet three days earlier than originally scheduled to give senators and Gov. Dave Heineman more time to work on cutting the state budget.

The Economic Forecasting Advisory Board, which provides the official state revenue forecasts used for budget decisions, will meet at 1 p.m. Oct. 27 instead of Oct. 30.

That change will give the governor and senators the new official revenue figures earlier and provide more time to work on budget cutting ideas, said Sen. Lavon Heidemann, chairman of the Appropriations Committee.

The governor has said he will call senators to a special budget-cutting session because of lower-than-expected tax revenue. That session is expected to begin Nov. 4.

The Appropriations Committee is working on ideas to strip the $6.9 billion two-year budget, Heidemann said. But most work will come after the governor makes his proposal, he added.

Omaha Sen. Jeremy Nordquist, a member of the Appropriations Committee, said some areas may be harder to cut.

For instance, cuts in Medicaid eligibility could mean a loss of federal stimulus funding, he pointed out.

And Nordquist will personally be reluctant to cut state aid to schools, he said, because the result will be an increase in property taxes.