Vermont House Speaker Shap Smith says he wasn't taken aback last week when Governor Peter Shumlin called for $8 million more in budget cuts.
Smith says it's not uncommon for governors late in a legislative session to criticize proposals drafted by lawmakers.
Shumlin administration officials called for new cuts including nearly $3 million more in cuts affecting employees and a $2 million cut in home energy efficiency programs.
Some lawmakers have expressed dismay at what they see as the governor's late entry into the debate.
Smith does say Shumlin called for more than $100 million in new taxes in January. He says he's wondering why the governor is objecting to tax-and-fee packages passed by the House and Senate of about $35 million.
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