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Fiscal Notes Review2015 Legislative SessionBecka Johnson Poppe
January 7, 2015
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A fiscal note is an objective estimate of a bill’s fiscal impact. Provides a 6-year projection of impact Describes least expensive way to reasonably implement
the bill Is always tied to a specific version of a bill Helps legislators evaluate a bill’s costs and merits Informs legislative staff, journalists, lobbyists, and others
WHAT IS A FISCAL NOTE?
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Fiscal notes inform legislative decisions that impact the UW We need to be responsive and accurate
The tricky part is… We have less than 72 hours to respond Fiscal notes cover a huge variety of topics
We need your help to quickly prepare accurate fiscal notes.
WHY SHOULD YOU CARE ABOUT FISCAL NOTES?
< 7
2 H
ours
OFM distributes the final FN to legislators
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FISCAL NOTE PROCESS OVERVIEW
Occasionally OFM sends a revision request
OPB adds FN to OFM’s system and submits it
OPB reviews FN for accuracy and completeness
Assessors prepare FN response in Bill Tracker
OPB adds FN to Bill Tracker and notifies assessors
OPB receives FN request from OFM
< 7
2 H
ours
OFM distributes the final FN to legislators
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FISCAL NOTE PROCESS OVERVIEW
Occasionally OFM sends a revision request
OPB adds FN to OFM’s system and submits it
OPB reviews FN for accuracy and completeness
Assessors prepare FN response in BillTracker
OPB adds FN to BillTracker and notifies assessors
OPB receives FN request from OFM
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Responding to a Fiscal Note Request
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1. Check the due date and time in the email notification
HOW TO RESPOND TO A FISCAL NOTE REQUEST
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1. Check the due date and time in the email notification
2. Read the bill
3. Review relevant laws and budgets (as needed)
4. Coordinate your response with others (as needed)
5. In Bill Tracker, describe the bill’s fiscal impact using all relevant narratives and tables
HOW TO RESPOND TO A FISCAL NOTE REQUEST
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Summary: overview of how the bill impacts the UW
Four types of impact that may be relevant…
Cash Receipts: the bill’s estimated impact on the UW’s cash receipts (taxes & fees)
Expenditures: expenditures necessary to implement the bill, including all assumptions
FTEs: list of additional staff time FTEs (by job title and annual salary) required to implement the legislation
Capital: acquisition and construction costs not reflected elsewhere and describes potential financing
ELEMENTS OF A FISCAL NOTE
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FTE - EXAMPLE
Job Title, Full-time Salary FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY21
Wizard, $200,000 0.5 0.5
TOTAL 0.5 0.5
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FTE - EXAMPLE
Job Title, Full-time Salary FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY21
Wizard, $200,000 0.5 0.5
Ring Bearer, $90,000 1.0 1.0
TOTAL 1.5 1.5
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FTE - EXAMPLE
Full-time salary (not including benefits) Number of FTE required for that job title/salary
Job Title, Full-time Salary FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY21
Wizard, $200,000 0.5 0.5
Ring Bearer, $90,000 1.0 1.0
Project Manager, $80,000 0.1 0.1 0.1
TOTAL 1.6 1.6 0.1
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RESOURCES: POP-UP WINDOWS
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RESOURCES: POP-UP WINDOWS
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RESOURCES: FISCAL NOTE EXAMPLE
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1. Check the due date and time in the email notification
2. Read the bill
3. Review relevant laws and budgets (as needed)
4. Coordinate your response with others (as needed)
5. In Bill Tracker, describe the bill’s fiscal impact using all relevant narratives and tables
6. To save and return later, hit “Submit Feedback” (every 3hrs)
7. When finished, check “this is my final response” and hit “Submit Feedback”
HOW TO RESPOND TO A FISCAL NOTE REQUEST
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If there are too many unknowns to make a reasonable estimate, you can say impact is “indeterminate”
However, we must still:• Explain why the impact is indeterminate• Give a rough estimate of the fiscal impact (either “Less than
$50,000 per fiscal year” or “Greater than $50,000 per fiscal year”)
• Provide a range of scenarios that provide a sense of scale, indicate which scenario is most likely
WHEN THE FISCAL IMPACT IS INDETERMINATE
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In such cases, we can cite ‘no fiscal impact,’ However, we must still:
• Provide information about the scale of the costs • Explain what existing activities/efforts might be displaced
in order to accommodate the legislation
WHEN COST IS SMALL AND CAN BE ABSORBED
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A fiscal note must be objective, so please communicate your opinions separately
Reminder: Fiscal assessments must take priority over general assessments
WHEN YOU HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT A BILL
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Write for a general audience, avoid jargon Only report the incremental impact of the bill Report current dollars, don’t build in inflation Identify costs/receipts as one-time or on-going Identify and explain ALL assumptions Use realistic implementation dates and account for them Separate cost of benefits from cost of salaries In the FTE section, report the number of FTE needed Respond! please
TIPS AND REMINDERS
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OFM’s 2014 Fiscal Note Instructions: http://ofm.wa.gov/budget/ instructions/other/agencyfiscalnoteinstructions.pdf
OFM’s Fund Look-up: http://www.ofm.wa.gov/fund/
OFM’s Fiscal Note Look-up: https://fortress.wa.gov/ofm/fnspublic/
WA Legislature Home (bill and law search): www.leg.wa.gov
ADDITIONAL FISCAL NOTE RESOURCES
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Becka [email protected] (206) 616-7203
Miranda [email protected] (206) 685-7449
Sharyl [email protected] (206) 543-4679
If you don’t know who your fiscal note analyst is, or if you have general questions, contact Becka.
FISCAL NOTE ASSISTANCE
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Questions?
