Within the rules?
Republican held a news conference to say they didn't like the "tax and spend" budget this afternoon. Of course, no one has seen an actual copy, but they don't like what they've heard.
Rep. John Blust raised a point that the GOP has been brought up before: the budget may not be within the rules. The rule in question:
(b) Only such matters as are in difference between the two houses shall be considered by the conferees, and the conference report shall deal only with such matters. The conference report may be made by a majority of the House members of such conference committee and shall not be amended.
And there are a few things in the budget conference report that weren't in either the House or Senate bill. For example, the bit that lets the Panthers sell beer at 11 a.m. on the Sunday of game days, or, oddly enough, the county option to do a transfer tax.
"There are obviously some things that in the conference report, we've been told, that weren't in either House's budget. And clearly the conference report of the budget is out of order in the House. And if Speaker Hackney rules that it is, he may be able to get a job as
an NBA official, Blust said.
Since Hackney had a hand in drafting the budget, I somehow doubt he's going to rule it out of order. But expect to hear the argument made.
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