Tagged: budget

Governor Sam Brownback’s budget proposal would reinstate some funding for arts programs, but would do away with the Kansas Arts Commission. The Kansas Film Commission and Arts Commission would be combined to become the Kansas Creative Industries Commission.

The governor’s budget would provide $200,000 to the new organization. State Budget Director Steve Anderson says that money would be available for arts programs that create economic development.

The President's budget, which was made public yesterday, pegs $150 million for the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility. That's the Level 4 laboratory designed to test highly contagious pathogens and foreign animal diseases operated by the Department of Homeland Security. DHS awarded the $650 million project to K-State a couple of years ago.

Officials told reporters in a teleconference yesterday they were happy with the budget proposal.

Kansas City, MO – The Kansas City, Mo., finance department verified Wednesday that after two years of major spending cuts the city has money in the bank. And the mayor and council members immediately started talking about how much more the city should borrow.

The 34.2 million dollars the city has in its general fund today, day one of its new fiscal year, is about 8 percent of this year's budget. That's the largest balance in a decade, and the city's credit rating is also at its highest in ten years.

Jefferson City, Mo. – The House Budget Committee spent nearly four hours Wednesday night amending and voting on bills that make up the state budget.

Committee members only made it through about a third of the budget bills before calling it a night.

House Budget Chair Allen Icet says so far they've identified 65 million dollars that can be trimmed from various departments.

"None of these should affect any services or anything. For the most part, it was either lapse, or funding that would be considered excess," says Icet.

Kansas City, Mo. – Missouri Governor Jay Nixon says the recent news of significantly smaller than expected revenues will mean some challenging choices for the state. The governor says he and other lawmakers are considering a number of ways to deal with the problem.