Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families: Problems down the road with governor’s highway plan

“The governor wants to get through the first year by spending down some of the rainy day fund and using part of reamining surplus funds. As far as short term solutions, it could be a lot worse. But big problems with the Governor’s plan show up in year two and beyond. The plan leaves a number of important questions unanswered. Most concerning is: how will we handle the unprecedented withdrawal of general revenue funds, which are already taking a beating from the most recent two rounds of tax cuts? If the state fails to replace the funds taken out of general revenue, and there is no guarantee that they can or will be able to do so, the list of critical services that could be on the chopping block is long and alarming. Think of programs that protect abused and neglected children, kids in pre-k or afterschool and summer programs, public defenders and firefighters.”

Read the full report here