17-7-138. Operating budget. (1) (a) Expenditures by a state agency must be made in substantial compliance with the budget approved by the legislature. Substantial compliance may be determined by conformity to legislative intent as established in the narrative accompanying the general appropriations act. An explanation of any significant change in agency or program scope, objectives, activities, or expenditures must be submitted to the legislative fiscal analyst for review and comment by the legislative finance committee prior to any implementation of the change. If the approving authority certifies that a change is time-sensitive, the approving authority may approve the change prior to the next regularly scheduled meeting of the legislative finance committee. The approving authority shall submit all proposed time-sensitive changes to the legislative fiscal analyst prior to approval. If the legislative fiscal analyst determines that notification of the legislative finance committee is warranted, the legislative fiscal analyst shall immediately notify as many members as possible of the proposed change and communicate any concerns expressed to the approving authority. The approving authority shall present a report fully explaining the reasons for the action to the next meeting of the legislative finance committee. Except as provided in subsection (2), the expenditure of money appropriated in the general appropriations act is contingent upon approval of an operating budget by August 1 of each fiscal year. An approved original operating budget must comply with state law.
     (b) For the purposes of this subsection (1), an agency or program is considered to have a significant change in its scope, objectives, activities, or expenditures if:
     (i) the expenditure change exceeds $1 million; or
     (ii) the expenditure change exceeds 25% of a budget category and the change is greater than $25,000. If there have been other changes to the budget category in the current fiscal year, all the changes, including the change under consideration, must be used in determining the 25% and $25,000 threshold.
     (2) The expenditure of money appropriated in the general appropriations act to the university system units, as defined in 17-7-102, is contingent upon approval of an operating budget by October 1 of each fiscal year. All other requirements in this section apply to the university system.
     (3) The operating budget for money appropriated by the general appropriations act must be separate from the operating budget for money appropriated by another law except a law appropriating money for the state pay plan or any portion of the state pay plan. Each operating budget must include expenditures for each agency program, detailed at least by first-level categories as provided in 17-1-102(3). Each agency shall record its operating budget and any approved changes on the statewide budget and accounting system. Forms used for changing an operating budget must reference the current, complete, and approved operating budget, show the proposed changes to the operating budget, and reference any other pending documents to change the operating budget.

     History: En. Sec. 8, Ch. 787, L. 1991; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 8, Sp. L. July 1992; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 11, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 13, Ch. 347, L. 1997.