During a visit to Nixa Public Schools’ Early Childhood Center yesterday, Gov. Eric Greitens introduced a fiscal 2018 budget he said would fix the state’s broken spending plan.
Though he spoke about dramatic cuts, the
$27.6 billion proposal is roughly 1 percent higher than Gov. Jay Nixon’s
$27.3 million proposal a year ago.
The new governor’s budget emphasizes K-12 education funding, as well as support for Missourians with developmental disabilities and victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. It also includes money to combat the state’s opioid epidemic and cyberthreats, according to the
budget summary posted online.
“A lot of new investment is going to the most vulnerable,” said Greitens, who did not state the budget’s total during the announcement in Nixa.
Asked why he chose Nixa Public Schools’ Early Learning Center to announce the state budget, Greitens said, “Too often politicians and insiders forget the budget is the people’s money.”
Greitens broke from tradition by not outlining the budget during the
State of the State address last month.
“We wanted to come out and present our budget to the people of the state of Missouri,” he said yesterday.
The governor’s proposed budget includes:
• $3.3 billion for the K-12 foundation formula;
• $33.8 million to provide case management, transitional services and crisis residential placement for people with developmental disabilities;
• $13 million for provide education to students with disabilities;
• $12.4 million to serve additional children and reduce the caseload for special education teachers;
• $11 million to step up the state’s battle against opioids;
• $10.7 million to help children who have been removed from their homes after being abused or neglected; and
• $2 million to cover potential web security threats, attacks and breaches.
Greitens’ budget includes $572 million in systemwide state government cuts and a reduction of the state’s workforce by 188 positions.
The budget’s higher education figure of $1.2 billion is down from $1.3 billion in the fiscal 2017 budget. In January, Greitens withheld $146.4 million from the fiscal 2017 budget, $6.3 million of which affected Missouri State University.
With the Nixa school as a backdrop, Greitens also warned he planned to cut $700 million in additional funds over the next 18 months. Only $572 million of that appears to be included in his fiscal 2018 budget proposal. The budget requires approval by the Missouri General Assembly.
“Missouri’s budget is broken,” Greitens said yesterday of the need for cuts. “Missouri’s budget comes out of your paycheck. We should help you earn more.”
