Rhode Island § 35-3-20 - State Budget

§ 35-3-20. State budget reserve and cash stabilization account.

(a) There is hereby created within the general fund a state budget reserve and cash stabilization account, which shall be administered by the state controller and which shall be used solely for the purpose of providing such sums as may be appropriated to fund any unanticipated general revenue deficit caused by a general revenue shortfall.

(b) In carrying out the provisions of § 35-3-20.1, the state controller shall, based on that fiscal year’s estimate, transfer the amounts needed to fund cash requirements during the fiscal year; the transfer shall be adjusted at the end of the fiscal year in order to conform to the requirements of § 35-3-20.1. To the extent that funds so transferred are not needed by the Rhode Island Capital Plan fund the funds may be loaned back to the general fund.

(c) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2009, whenever the aggregate of the monies and securities held for the credit of the state budget reserve and cash stabilization account exceeds three and four tenths of one percent (3.4%) of total fiscal year resources, consisting of the aggregate of (1) actual revenues from taxes and other departmental general revenue sources; and (2) the general revenue balance available for appropriations at the beginning of the fiscal year; the excess shall be transferred to the Rhode Island Capital Plan fund, to be used solely for capital projects. Provided further, the applicable percentage shall increase by four-tenths of one percent (.4%) for the succeeding four (4) fiscal years as follows:

Fiscal year ending June 30, 2010                                          3.8%

Fiscal year ending June 30, 2011                                          4.2%

Fiscal year ending June 30, 2012                                          4.6%

Fiscal years ending June 30, 2013, and thereafter                                          5.0%

(d) At any time after the third quarter of a fiscal year, that it is indicated that total resources which are defined to be the aggregate of estimated general revenue, general revenue receivables, and available free surplus in the general fund will be less than the estimates upon which current appropriations were based, the general assembly may make appropriations from the state budget reserve and cash stabilization account for the difference between the estimated total resources and the original estimates upon which enacted appropriations were based, but only in the amount of the difference based upon the revenues projected at the latest state revenue estimating conference pursuant to chapter 16 of this title as reported by the chairperson of that conference.

(e) Whenever a transfer has been made pursuant to subsection (d), that transfer shall be considered as estimated general revenues for the purposes of determining the amount to be transferred to the Rhode Island Capital Plan fund for the purposes of § 35-3-20.1(b).

(f) Whenever a transfer has been made pursuant to subsection (d), the amount of the transfer shall be transferred to the Rhode Island Capital Plan fund from funds payable into the general revenue fund pursuant to § 35-3-20.1 in the fiscal year following the fiscal year in which the transfer was made, except that in fiscal year 2010 there shall be no repayment of the amount transferred, and the repayment shall be made in fiscal year 2011.