The Massachusetts budget will be late again this year.
Although the 2020 fiscal year begins July 1, lawmakers do not expect to have a state budget in place by then.
“If you’re asking me if it’s going to be done by July 1, probably not,” House Speaker Robert DeLeo, D-Winthrop, said when asked about the budget Monday afternoon.
House and Senate leaders plan to pass a “one-twelfth budget” Monday and send it to Gov. Charlie Baker. That is a budget that level funds state government for the first month of the fiscal year to ensure that state agencies can continue operating without a full-year budget in place.
Last year, Massachusetts was the last state in the country to pass a budget. The Legislature passed the budget July 18 and Baker signed it July 26.
This year, the Ways and Means Committee is operating with two new chairs — Sen. Michael Rodrigues, D-Westport, and Rep. Aaron Michlewitz, D-Boston.
DeLeo said House and Senate negotiators are meeting and talking. “The discussion has been productive, but they have not obviously completed their work,” DeLeo said.
DeLeo said the chairs “feel that they are making process and hopefully things will be done in relatively short order.”
After the budget is released from the conference committee, both the House and Senate will hold up or down votes, with no amendments allowed. The bill will then go to Baker, who has 10 days to review it. Baker can veto individual budget line items.