By Laura Weber, Michigan Public Radio Network
LANSING , MI – State lawmakers are heading into the final hours of the fiscal year. A stalemate over the K-12 education budget has stalled the process of reaching a deal.
Some Democrats in the House say the cuts to schools and early childhood education would hurt Michigan's future more than any other proposed cut. But House Appropriations chairman George Cushingberry says the state has to live within its means.
"Somebody's got to pay," he says. "If we ran our checkbooks in our own personal families like some of us would like us to run state government, we wouldn't have anything. Because at some point you have to recognize when it ain't no money in the till, you can't spend it."
Republican Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop says he agrees education is important, which is why the K-12 budget cuts are some of the smallest in the Senate's proposal.
The Legislature has approved the higher education budget - that eliminates the Michigan Promise college scholarship if Governor Granholm signs the bill. The Legislature also has a continuation budget ready that would allow spending to continue and avoid a government shutdown.