Knight predicts Riley will need to declare proration

The chairman of a state budget committee said he expects there will be a need for Gov. Bob Riley to declare proration in the state's $2 billion General Fund budget this fiscal year.
"Unless something drastically turns around, the governor is going to have to declare proration," said state Rep. John Knight, chairman of the House General Fund budget committee.
He said revenue projections are below expectations and he would advise Riley to declare proration as soon as possible.
Knight, D-Montgomery, said he did not want to project revenues, but said they will likely be below $1.7 billion.
Some agencies, including corrections and Medicaid, have no cushion for cuts, he said.
His goal, he said, is to "avoid layoffs any way we possibly can." The state has been able to avoid layoffs and more massive cuts because of the $3 billion in federal stimulus money that has come into the state.
Knight and House Speaker Seth Hammett, D-Andalusia, spoke Wednesday at a meeting of the Association of County Commissions of Alabama.

-- posted by Sebastian Kitchen