Nebraska lawmakers are working their way through proposed budget cuts in the current fiscal year, an effort to soften the blow when they deal with the upcoming two-year budget this session.

Appropriations Committee chair, Senator John Stinner of Gering, says some have questioned why the legislature should work on the current budget when the projected deficit is for the upcoming budget. . .

Stinner says the committee has agreed, in large part, with the cuts already implemented by the Ricketts Administration.

The governor proposed 151-Million dollars in cuts. The committee trimmed that to 137-Million.

Senator Patty Pansing Brooks of Lincoln says the debate needs to be broadened; talking not just about budget cuts, but about proposed tax cuts which could undermine state revenue in the future.

Debate picks up as the Unicameral attempts to deal with a projected loss of 900-Million dollars in state revenue over the next two fiscal years.