Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders proposes nearly $6.5B budget half of which goes toward a school voucher program [View all]

November 21, 2024

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Thursday proposed a nearly $6.5 billion budget for the coming year that directs half of new spending toward a school voucher program.

The Republican governor called for increasing the state's budget by nearly 3%, or $182.5 million, in the fiscal year that begins July 1. Sanders detailed the budget plan to lawmakers ahead of next year's legislative session, which begins Jan. 13.

“Budgets show our priorities and deliver on the promises we all spent years campaigning on: education, maternal health, efficient government, public safety, and child well-being,” Sanders told members of the Joint Budget Committee. “We all ran on improving these systems. Through this balanced budget, we can deliver on our promises.”

The budget proposal forecasts that the state will end the coming fiscal year with a surplus of nearly $300 million. Finance officials have said they expect Arkansas to end the current fiscal year with a surplus of about $280 million.

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https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/arkansas-governor-proposes-65b-budget-school-vouchers/91-a2d5624d-6db6-4d5d-b663-e07d61cb8897