House Tax Chairman Dennis Lake, R-Blackfoot, moved to propose the Joint Economic Outlook & Revenue Assessment Committee's median projection as the recommended revenue projection for fy 2011, and accept the governor's figure for 2010. Then, Sen. Russ Fulcher, R-Meridian, proposed a much lower figure: $2.28 billion for fiscal year 2010; and $2.3 billion for fy 2011. Senate President Pro-Tem Bob Geddes, R-Soda Springs, seconded Fulcher's motion. "Ultimately, I see the function of this committee and the recommendation that we make to be one that needs to exhibit some prudence when we're handling the people's money," Fulcher said. "So I've got a little bit more conservative number that I'm going to recommend. ... I guess I'll just add that I hope that that's wrong. But I can see the numbers, I can see what happened with December and recent months. And I just don't want to fall prey to having to come back and do this again."

Senate Tax Chairman Brent Hill, R-Rexburg, then moved to set the figure at a figure $83.8 million below the governor's recommendation for fy 2011 - which is consistent with the governor's budget proposal. Gov. Butch Otter proposed spending $83.8 million less than his own economists say the state will bring in next year, just in case.

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