Utah

Utah has a statutory limit on appropriations under Utah Code, Title 63J, Chapter 3, Part 2, Sections 201-206. The appropriations limit was enacted in 1988 by the legislature establishes a state appropriations limit for each fiscal year beginning after June 30, 1988 (end of FY 1988). It limits the annual legislative appropriations for “this state, its agencies, departments, and institutions” to the sum of inflation plus population growth. It includes an adjustment for the transfer of programs to or from a different unit of government. It can be overridden by a declaration of fiscal emergency with a 2/3 supermajority approval by the legislature temporarily and excess funding for a fiscal emergency still applies to future limitations unless overridden by a popular vote.

The limit does, however, have numerous exemptions. Exemptions include money from either federal or local governments, debt service, money from the sale of fixed assets, expenditures of gifts received from specific purposes, transfers to the budget reserve account, and one-time capital project costs.