Budget Deadline Fast Approaching

Two days of negotiations have brought Republicans and Democrats close to a budget deal, but both sides are still fighting over taxes for casinos and home sales.

Legislative leaders plan meetings Monday and expect marathon sessions in the Senate and Assembly before they then vote on the final day allowed by law.

"Clearly we made significant progress tonight," Democratic Senate President Richard J. Codey, D-Union, said after talks broke up early Monday morning. "We are all optimistic that tomorrow we can finally have a deal for everyone."

Lawmakers said however close they might be in principal, there still needs to be much work done.

"We're going into specifics. We're trying to work out language. It's a very involved process," Republican Senate President John O. Bennett.

GOP senators on Sunday offered to vote on at least six of the eight bills they had threatened to kill because the measures raised more than $800 million by taxing cigarettes, casinos, telephones and home sales.

Gov. James E. McGreevey, who called the Legislature into emergency session over the weekend, said that was "a desirable step forward."

With 20 members of each party in the Senate, McGreevey needs at least one Republican senator to vote for any budget bill. Democrats control the Assembly.

Under the state constitution, the Legislature must pass a balanced budget before 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. Without one, McGreevey says all state government operations except emergency services will halt.

"We do not want to shut down government and that is a big consensus," Assembly Speaker Albio Sires, D-Hudson said.

GOP members so far support all but a tax on telephones and an increase in fees for home sales. That leaves Republicans and Democrats roughly $250 million away from balancing the budget.

Budget committees from both the Senate and Assembly planned to meet Monday. If a deal is reached, votes on the budget and other bills necessary to balance it could be held sometime Monday.

Legislators cautioned that it could take several hours for members to review whatever deal is reached and several more hours to compile, proofread and copy the actual bills. The budget itself runs nearly 300 pages.

The budget and its accompanying bills have passed the Assembly's budget panel, but must clear the Senate committee before each house can vote. Assembly budget members were in the Statehouse, ready to act if needed, and the remainder of the house members were on call.

The two sides have battled for the past three weeks over a series of fee hikes in the Democrats' budget proposal.

Democrats argued that Republicans offered no specific program cuts to replace revenue raised by the fees. The GOP insisted on cuts to most areas of state government, reduced aid to cities and capped administrative costs in 30 school districts that get special state funding.

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