Legislation headed to Governor Rick Snyder would divert surplus school aid money to help fill Michigan’s budget hole.
The Michigan Public Radio Network’s Jake Neher reports.
The bills would make cuts to several state departments to help address the half-billion dollar budget shortfall. They would also shift $250 million from the state’s School Aid Fund.
Democrats like Senator Hoon-Yung Hopgood say revenues earmarked for education are too easy a target for Republican leaders.
“Well it’s not convenient for our kids,” he says. “This could be going to our elementary, middle, and high schools, where it’s desperately needed.”
Republicans say the School Aid Fund is running a surplus, and schools were not expecting to receive any of the money.