With the state’s Office of Management and Budget talking to agencies about potential savings in the next biennium, and the word that a big operator in the Bakken has stopped drilling for oil, there have been rumors that Governor Armstrong may order an allotment before this budget period is up.
An allotment means an across the board budget reduction. The Governor has the power to make those reductions in times when revenue is down, and budgets are tight.
The chairman of the state Board of Higher Education, Kevin Black, mentioned the possibility during a board meeting.
So is an allotment being considered? We asked Armstrong.
"No," Armstrong said. "The issue is, we're not going to have a $1.5 billion surplus. But oil is $62 (per barrel) today, and production is surprisingly resilient."
Armstrong said his administration is working on what budgets may look like in the next biennium.
"There is no panic right now," Armstrong said.
The last allotment happened in 2016.
