63J-1-315.  Medicaid Growth Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account — Transfers of Medicaid growth savings — Base budget adjustments.

(1)  As used in this section:

Terms Used In Utah Code 63J-1-315

  • Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
  • Debt service: means the money that is required annually to cover the repayment of interest and principal on state debt. See Utah Code 63J-1-102
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • Program: means a unit of accounting included on a schedule of programs within a line item used to track budget authorizations, collections, and expenditures on specific purposes or functions. See Utah Code 63J-1-102
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
(a)  “Department” means the Department of Health and Human Services created in Section 26B-1-201.

(b)  “Division” means the Division of Integrated Healthcare created in Section 26B-3-102.

(c)  “General Fund revenue surplus” means a situation where actual General Fund revenues collected in a completed fiscal year exceed the estimated revenues for the General Fund for that fiscal year that were adopted by the Executive Appropriations Committee of the Legislature.

(d)  “Medicaid growth savings” means the Medicaid growth target minus Medicaid program expenditures, if Medicaid program expenditures are less than the Medicaid growth target.

(e)  “Medicaid growth target” means Medicaid program expenditures for the previous year multiplied by 1.08.

(f)  “Medicaid program” is as defined in Section 26B-3-101.

(g)  “Medicaid program expenditures” means total state revenue expended for the Medicaid program from the General Fund, including restricted accounts within the General Fund, during a fiscal year.

(h)  “Medicaid program expenditures for the previous year” means total state revenue expended for the Medicaid program from the General Fund, including restricted accounts within the General Fund, during the fiscal year immediately preceding a fiscal year for which Medicaid program expenditures are calculated.

(i)  “Operating deficit” means that, at the end of the fiscal year, the unassigned fund balance in the General Fund is less than zero.

(j)  “State revenue” means revenue other than federal revenue.

(k)  “State revenue expended for the Medicaid program” includes money transferred or appropriated to the Medicaid Growth Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account only to the extent the money is appropriated for the Medicaid program by the Legislature.

(2)  There is created within the General Fund a restricted account to be known as the Medicaid Growth Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account.

(3) 

(a) 

(i)  Except as provided in Subsection (6), if, at the end of a fiscal year, there is a General Fund revenue surplus, the Division of Finance shall transfer an amount equal to Medicaid growth savings from the General Fund to the Medicaid Growth Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account.

(ii)  If the amount transferred is reduced to prevent an operating deficit, as provided in Subsection (6), the Legislature shall include, to the extent revenue is available, an amount equal to the reduction as an appropriation from the General Fund to the account in the base budget for the second fiscal year following the fiscal year for which the reduction was made.

(b)  If, at the end of a fiscal year, there is not a General Fund revenue surplus, the Legislature shall include, to the extent revenue is available, an amount equal to Medicaid growth savings as an appropriation from the General Fund to the account in the base budget for the second fiscal year following the fiscal year for which the reduction was made.

(c)  Subsections (3)(a) and (3)(b) apply only to the fiscal year in which the department implements the proposal developed under Section 26B-3-202 to reduce the long-term growth in state expenditures for the Medicaid program, and to each fiscal year after that year.

(4)  The Division of Finance shall calculate the amount to be transferred under Subsection (3):

(a)  before transferring revenue from the General Fund revenue surplus to:

(i)  the General Fund Budget Reserve Account under Section 63J-1-312;

(ii)  the Wildland Fire Suppression Fund created in Section 65A-8-204, as described in Section 63J-1-314; and

(iii)  the State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account under Section 63J-1-314;

(b)  before earmarking revenue from the General Fund revenue surplus to the Industrial Assistance Account under Section 63N-3-106; and

(c)  before making any other year-end contingency appropriations, year-end set-asides, or other year-end transfers required by law.

(5) 

(a)  If, at the close of any fiscal year, there appears to be insufficient money to pay additional debt service for any bonded debt authorized by the Legislature, the Division of Finance may hold back from any General Fund revenue surplus money sufficient to pay the additional debt service requirements resulting from issuance of bonded debt that was authorized by the Legislature.

(b)  The Division of Finance may not spend the hold back amount for debt service under Subsection (5)(a) unless and until it is appropriated by the Legislature.

(c)  If, after calculating the amount for transfer under Subsection (3), the remaining General Fund revenue surplus is insufficient to cover the hold back for debt service required by Subsection (5)(a), the Division of Finance shall reduce the transfer to the Medicaid Growth Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account by the amount necessary to cover the debt service hold back.

(d)  Notwithstanding Subsections (3) and (4), the Division of Finance shall hold back the General Fund balance for debt service authorized by this Subsection (5) before making any transfers to the Medicaid Growth Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account or any other designation or allocation of General Fund revenue surplus.

(6)  Notwithstanding Subsections (3) and (4), if, at the end of a fiscal year, the Division of Finance determines that an operating deficit exists and that holding back earmarks to the Industrial Assistance Account under Section 63N-3-106, transfers to the Wildland Fire Suppression Fund and State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account under Section 63J-1-314, transfers to the General Fund Budget Reserve Account under Section 63J-1-312, or earmarks and transfers to more than one of those accounts, in that order, does not eliminate the operating deficit, the Division of Finance may reduce the transfer to the Medicaid Growth Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account by the amount necessary to eliminate the operating deficit.

(7)  The Legislature may appropriate money from the Medicaid Growth Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account only:

(a)  if Medicaid program expenditures for the fiscal year for which the appropriation is made are estimated to be 108% or more of Medicaid program expenditures for the previous year; and

(b)  for the Medicaid program.

(8)  The Division of Finance shall deposit interest or other earnings derived from investment of Medicaid Growth Reduction and Budget Stabilization Account money into the General Fund.

Amended by Chapter 329, 2023 General Session

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