BOISE -- Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter continues to champion his fiscal year 2013 budget proposal, dispatching lieutenants to the Legislature to argue that projected revenue justifies the spending plan he outlined last month.
Budget chief Wayne Hammon has been jawboning lawmakers fearful Otter's forecast of $2.7 billion in revenue is too optimistic.
In the past, Otter has been swayed by the Legislature's more pessimistic forecasts.
Not so, this year.
On Thursday, Hammon released a plan he says underscores why the House and Senate can still support cutting taxes by $45 million, giving a $41 million bonus to teachers and state workers -- and sticking $60 million into rainy day accounts.
Despite pleas from disabled advocates, Hammon says Otter remains adamant about not restoring $35 million in funds cut from Medicaid last year.
