JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon says he is asking for relatively few funding increases in his $26 billion budget proposal for next fiscal year.
State budget director Linda Luebbering calls the budget ‘modest’ and says the state is recovering after revenues fell significantly short of expectations last year.
Nixon’s proposed budget includes a $50 million increase in basic aid for public schools and $12 million more for performance-based funding for public colleges and universities. He’s also asking lawmakers to approve more money for services to people with disabilities and programs to help the aging.
The Democratic governor said even more could be spent on education and other programs if lawmakers would approve several measures that could enhance revenues, including an expansion of Medicaid. Republican lawmakers have previously declined to do that.