Steve Flowers: Inside The Statehouse: Special election approaches

  As the long hot summer continues, several events have transpired that warrant mentioning. Several of you have asked if the September 18 constitutional referendum on borrowing money from the oil royalty trust fund is not approved will Gov. Bentley call a special session to address the gigantic void in the general fund budget. There will be a tremendous deficit in the budget between what is appropriated and the revenue that will be available. There will be a very short window to resolve the dilemma as the new 2013 fiscal year begins on October 1. Your guess is as good as mine. Gov. Bentley has repeatedly said that he will not call for any new revenue enhancement measures. You can also bet your bottom dollar that the legislature is not going to raise taxes, especially without the governor requesting such measures. They may just kick the can down the road and hope for the best.