Two days before the Legislature's main budget committee meets, the Republican caucuses decided that the committee will allot money to subcommittees to dole out during the 2005 legislative session that begins in January. That budget process has been used for the last couple of years and has worked well, according to Senate President-elect John Valentine, R-Orem. Valentine said the Executive Appropriations Committee will decide Wednesday in its interim meeting how much money each subcommittee will get to fork out. Then it is up to the subcommittees to allocate the funds, though the full Legislature must sign off. The caucuses, which met behind closed doors, also decided a range of housekeeping rules, such as parking and spousal building access. And the Republican lawmakers determined that it would only use surplus funds for one-time projects, not for ongoing expenses. Gov. Olene Walker has proposed the same in her budget recommendations. - Thomas Burr