Kentucky Worried About Budget 

Governor Steve Beshear is still worried about how he is going to get his budget paid for. He has tried to convince the state that slot machines are necessary but not everyone is buying it. Beshear says that without some other kind of help, the slot machines are their only hope to being able to offer all of the programs that they currently do. 

Beshear met with House Democratic leaders this past week in order to try and come to some kind of agreement. House Speaker Greg Stumbo confirmed that they had met to discuss the budgetary problems. They are currently working on three or four different ideas to try and make the budget work. Once they have decided which budget to move forward with, they will present it to rank and file House members for their approval. 

But Beshear is still pushing for slot machines to come in. Stumbo says that he doesn’t think that the House is going to go along with the plan, and that they are going to have to come up with something else to fix their “unprecedented budget shortfall.” Without the necessary funds, education programs will be cut, as will a number of services for the poor and elderly. 

Beshear said that he understood that many residents did not want to see the slot machines approved, but that they had to understand that if they don’t they are hurting themselves. Programs will have to be cut and taxes will have to be raised in order to fix the shortfall. He says that the shortfall is currently at $1.5 billion over the next two years and that they are going to have to do something about it. He says if not slot machines, then what? 

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