JACKSON -- After agencies requested more than $1.4 billion in increased spending during the annual budget hearings, the Joint Legislative Budget Committee adopted revenue estimates for the current FY 2010 and for FY 2011 in today's meeting.

During the Legislative Budget Committee meeting, members heard recommendations from the revenue estimating group. The group recommended reducing the current FY 2010 revenue estimate to $4.551 billion. This is $347.1 million less than from the original sine die estimate.

Revenue has continued to fall for much of the current FY 2010. For the first four months of FY 2010, revenue is $111.6 million less than originally projected or $154.4 million less than this same time last year.

Lt. Governor Phil Bryant said, "The magnitude of these budget challenges is real and I continue to believe it is best to approach this downturn in our State's economy with a fiscally conservative approach. I would have preferred that these projections would have been more conservative but we will take another look in January when the joint committee meets again."

During the hearing, the Joint Legislative Budget Committee also adopted a proposed estimate for FY 2011 of $4.562 billion. The revenue estimating group suggests that the state's economy will remain stagnant during the next Fiscal Year, which starts July 1, 2010.

The committee is made up of house and senate members with the chairmanship rotating each year between the Speaker of the House and the Lt. Governor.