Gov. Gary Herbert plans to issue an executive order Friday, directing state agencies to make immediate 3 percent across-the-board spending cuts to help cover a shortfall in the current budget year.

The order will give broad latitude to department heads to implement the cuts, necessary because the recession has driven down tax collections by as much as $190 million.

The governor's spokeswoman, Angie Welling, would not confirm the order, but said that Herbert will "outline his proposal to deal with the shortfall in the 2010 fiscal year" when he releases his budget proposal Friday morning.

A legislative economist warned lawmakers in September that tax revenues for the fiscal year could come in as much as $150 million below earlier predictions and it appears that forecast has come true.

But Welling said Herbert remains optimistic that, after the state weathers the difficulty in the current year, there are signs the economy will recover in the coming year.

Senate budget chairman Lyle Hillyard, R-Logan, said the current shortfall will require some immediate belt-tightening when lawmakers convene in January. And the 28-year legislative veteran says the upcoming budget act will be "the most difficult one I've ever seen."

But he is encouraged by the state's latest economic news, which he says shows signs of improvement.

"The good news I think you're going to hear [Friday] is I think we've bottomed out and may be even coming up a little bit," said Hillyard.

Friday's budget proposal marks Herbert's first as governor, and it comes during the worst economic downturn in Utah in generations, with policymakers forced to find $850 million in cuts or shifts in a budget already slashed by about a billion dollars earlier this year.

"I think people who have been waiting for this budget will be pleasantly surprised by what is released," Welling said. "The governor has been true to his pledge of balancing the budget without raising taxes or using fee increases."

Herbert said last month that he would only consider allowing a tax increase if "civilization as we knew it would come to an end." He has the backing of many of his fellow Republicans in that pursuit.

Fourteen senators have pledged to oppose any tax hikes that aren't offset by cuts to other taxes, according to Sen. Steve Urquhart, R-St. George, who has led the anti-tax effort.

Lawmakers are also eager to see what Herbert proposes, a departure from last year, when Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s budget blueprint was immediately disregarded.

"I'm very curious, particularly because what the governor has done in setting up his budget," said House Speaker Dave Clark, R-Santa Clara. "I'm extremely anxious how he can put together what he thinks are priorities for the state ... and how to do it on ever-shrinking revenues and ever-increasing needs."

A report from the governor's office last month showed what types of measures might be required to meet cuts made during last year's session and due to kick in next July:

» The elimination of 942 more state jobs, on top of 1,991 wiped out since July 1.

» Fewer teachers and bigger class sizes in public schools.

» Possible enrollment caps at some colleges and universities.

» The potential elimination of the general assistance program intended to give short-term aid to disabled people to help them keep their homes.

» The prospect of releasing prison inmates early.

"It's a tough situation to be in," said Stephen Kroes, director of the Utah Foundation, a nonpartisan economic think tank. "I don't think anybody likes to be the leader when there's a huge recession going on, but it's also a chance to show his skills and prove he can lead us out of a difficult situation."

Welling said that, given the economic climate, some cuts are to be expected, "but there will not be the severe cuts people have predicted."

Welling said the budget will take care of Herbert's priorities: public and higher education and critical services.