Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Highlights Recent News About State Budgets in Arkansas, Kansas
Summaries of recent news about state budgets in Arkansas and Kansas appear below.
- Arkansas: Gov. Mike Beebe (D) last week said that a nearly $260 million budget surplus could be spent on shortfalls facing the state's Medicaid program and prisons, the AP/Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports. Last month, Beebe proposed using the money to create a rainy-day fund to meet projected budget shortfalls. State Department of Finance and Administration estimates show that the national economic downturn would reach Arkansas in the next fiscal year (AP/Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, 11/3).
- Kansas: The state faces a $136 million budget deficit this fiscal year, which likely will force additional budget cuts and prevent action on any new spending proposals, including health care expansion, the Kansas City Star reports. According to state Budget Director Duane Goossen, the administration of Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D) is working on a revised budget that will address a projected decline in revenue. The revised budget will be presented to lawmakers in January 2009; however, until then lawmakers will meet with state agencies to discuss plans to reduce their budgets. Sebelius previously asked most government agencies to reduce their budgets by 2% this year and 5% next year. However, "more things will have to be done," according to Goossen (Klepper, Kansas City Star, 11/4). Sebelius said the only tax increase she supports is an increase in the tobacco tax, which was used in 2002 to address a budget shortfall. The state's current tobacco tax is 79 cents, and the Kansas Health Policy Authority is calling for a 75 cent increase, which the authority says should be used to expand Medicaid eligibility. Sebelius said revenue from an increased tobacco tax should fund health programs, although not necessarily Medicaid (Shields, Kansas Health Institute News, 11/5).
