//December 15, 2011
ANNAPOLIS — A panel of Maryland lawmakers is scheduled to make recommendations on state spending for the next fiscal year.
The Spending Affordability Committee will meet Thursday evening in Annapolis.
The panel has made recommendations to the executive branch since 1982.
The recommendations are not binding on the governor, who submits the state budget in January. However, the executive branch has come close to the recommendations in the past.
The panel includes 23 lawmakers from the House and Senate and three citizens.
Maryland is facing a budget deficit of roughly $1 billion in the next fiscal year.