AUGUSTA – House Democrats hung tough shortly before 1:30 a.m. Wednesday and voted 77-74 to give all but final approval to the party’s majority budget.

The at times emotional and impassioned debate reflected deep divisions between Republicans and Democrats on several components within the $5.8 billion, two-year state budget including:

. A plan to obtain a state revenue bond authorizing borrowing up to $450 million to balance the state budget and pay down state retirement system debt.

. Refinancing the state retirement system debt for another 14 years which, after adjustments, is expected to add about $2.6 billion in interest payments for the state over the life of the loan.

A little before 9:30 p.m., Rep. Joseph Brannigan, D-Portland and House chairman of the Appropriations Committee, introduced his anticipated amendment to the budget which struck language of concern to outdoors enthusiasts from LD 468. Originally endorsed in an 8-5 vote by majority Democrats on the Appropriations Committee, Democrats abandoned provisions of the budget that would have imposed a $10 registration fee on canoes and kayaks and increased the minimum fine for motorists failing to wear a seat belt from $60 to $212.

Shortly before midnight, the House rejected in a 77-74 vote the entire seat belt proposal, which would have raised fines for not buckling up and elevated failure to wear a seat belt from a secondary to a primary offense. Numerous lawmakers argued the matter should be taken up by the Legislature’s Transportation Committee as a policy question, not as a revenue enhancement mechanism in the budget.

Brannigan also announced Democrats would abandon a plan to ask the Conservation and Inland Fisheries and Wildlife departments to establish a study committee to determine the feasibility of charging fees for hikers, bird watchers and others who enjoy the woods but have historically not “paid their fair share” according to the plan’s proponents.

Democrats have defended the budget as a well-crafted bill that cuts state spending by $450 million, provides an additional $250 million in educational funding and maintains the state’s safety net for its neediest residents without imposing new broad-based taxes. The $450 million state revenue bond proposal was justified by Democrats as a funding mechanism commonly used in other states.

But Rep. Sawin Millett, R-Waterford, a member of the Appropriations Committee, argued the use of borrowed money for the purpose of balancing the budget should only be a “last resort” when every other option has been exhausted. Millett also deplored nearly $1.5 billion in “off-budget” costs to taxpayers not reflected in the bill. He said those hidden costs resulted from the state’s accounting approach to expensive programs like the Business Equipment Tax Reimbursement program and the property tax reimbursement program known as the circuit breaker rebate.

“What started out as an exercise of replacing a budget that was adopted two years ago, updated a year ago and updated again to stand at just under $5.4 billion for the current [budget cycle before advancing] to the governor’s $5.7 billion budget,” he said, “in reality, is a $5.9 billion budget because of all of the items we have taken off-line and moved away from the public view.”

Millett said the Democrats’ plan to borrow up to $450 million amounted to deficit spending and would leave the state without enough money to maintain state services when the next Legislature convenes in two years. Millett attempted to convince lawmakers to attach a statewide referendum vote to the borrowing component of the budget, but the amendment failed, 76-75.

Shortly before midnight, two Democrats, Reps. Barbara Merrill, D-Appleton, and Joanne Twomey, D-Biddeford, were not supporting the budget proposal, but Democrats were still expected to be able to pass the measure. Democrats hold 76 seats in the House to the Republicans’ 73. The entire membership reaches 151 with the inclusion of one unenrolled member and one Green Independent. Both appeared to be inclined to support the plan and offset the loss of support from Merrill and Twomey.

Republicans made a last-ditch effort when Rep. Stephen Bowen, R-Rockport, and a member of the Appropriations Committee, offered an amendment urging Democrats to slow down on the budget proposal and enact a continuing resolution to pay for state government operations from July through September. The delay would allow time for further discussion of complex issues within the budget, he said. The suggestion was rejected 77-74.

“Procrastinating won’t make any of our tough choices any easier,” argued Rep. Jeremy Fischer, D-Presque Isle, and an Appropriations Committee member who claimed Republicans had not produced a competing budget proposal. “The easy thing and the right thing are rarely the same thing.”

“We look forward to the people of this state picking up their newspapers tomorrow morning and reading that Democrats in the House passed this budget, borrowing $450 million without asking them – and doing it alone,” Bowen responded.

Another amendment that did pass House muster was proposed by Rep. Herbie Clark, D-Millinocket, who argued that the inclusion of $530,000 in the budget to allow the Maine Senate to add four more staff members was excessive at a time when Mainers were being asked to do with less and pay more. House Majority Leader Glenn Cummings, D-Portland, argued that offsetting reductions were made by the Senate to keep the Legislative budget within spending constraints. House members agreed with Clark and voted 79-72 to eliminate funding for the Senate positions.

The Senate is scheduled to take the budget up today and will likely insist on their request for more staff. The disagreement will have to be worked out before 11:59 p.m. Friday if the Democratic majority budget is to meet its deadline for enactment.