A legislative committee canceled its meetings next week after about $25,000 in excess spending came to light on Thursday.
The Arkansas Legislative Council will meet today to decide what to do with the Joint Performance Review Committee's budget. The committee has a budget of $60,000 for fiscal year 2016, but so far has spent $85,000. The budget pays mileage and per diem rates for lawmakers as well as travel expenses for some guest speakers and meeting room fees. Fiscal year 2016 ends June 30.
The Joint Performance Review Committee meetings have focused on the state Department of Human Services, including investigating child removals and placements by the state and the over-budget Medicaid enrollment system.
It has a broad mandate including investigating problem areas of state government, referring problems to other committees, taking citizen complaints and writing reports to the Legislature and governor.
The committee was scheduled to meet next Monday and Tuesday to discuss licensing processes used by health-related boards.
The committee co-chairmen, Sen. Alan Clark, R-Lonsdale, and Rep. Kim Hammer, R-Benton, defended the committee's record during a meeting Thursday of another legislative group, the Policy-Making Subcommittee of the Arkansas Legislative Council.
"There are some horrific things going on out there and we are on the verge of exposing them," Clark said. "We've met a lot of resistance, but we have found ways to get around that resistance."
Clark said Joint Performance Review has exceeded its budget in part because meetings have been attended by lawmakers who are not members of the panel. When lawmakers sign in to a meeting, they receive a mileage reimbursement and a per diem.
Most lawmakers each get $150 per diem for attending meetings in Little Rock. Those who live within 50 miles of the Capitol are paid $61 per diem. Lawmakers also receive 57.5 cents for each mile traveled. Those expenses come from the committee's budget.
During the nearly two-hour discussion, Rep. Andy Davis, R-Little Rock, said he would favor limiting reimbursements for nonmembers. Sen. Joyce Elliott, D-Little Rock, suggested referring some matters to other committees to save money.
But Elliott and Davis disagreed about what to do about the committee's existing expenses and future funding.
After subcommittee members proposed taking money from other committees -- including the Economic and Tax Policy Committee, which hasn't met -- Elliott proposed a motion to delay the decision. Her motion passed.
Davis then proposed giving Joint Performance Review $30,000 to eliminate its overexpenditure and allow it to hold its next meeting.
Rep. George McGill, D-Fort Smith, co-chairman of the Policy-Making Subcommittee, ruled the new motion was contrary to what had passed and dismissed it.
Later on Thursday, House Speaker Jeremy Gillam, R-Judsonia, said he supported clearing the Joint Performance Review committee's overexpenditure today, but wanted to analyze the situation more before granting the committee additional money.
"I think there are some things they could do internally where they wouldn't have to come back and ask for much next year," he said.
Metro on 12/18/2015