A state budget agreement reached by Kentucky legislative leaders after a marathon negotiating session is expected to be voted on by the full General Assembly today.House and Senate leaders announced Monday morning that they had agreed on a $19 billion spending plan for the next two years. House Speaker Jody Richards says it contains both good and bad news."It’s an improvement over the executive budget that we got and all in all, will serve the needs of the state," Richards said. "We’ll just come back when we have more money and try to do a better job."The compromise budget has since been criticized by some lawmakers, who say it fails to adequately fund education and social services. Legislative leaders have been faced with the task of finding ways to deal with projected $900 million revenue shortfall over the next biennium. The budget to be submitted to lawmakers today does not include any new taxes or tax increases.Thanks to Kentucky Public Radio's Tony McVeigh
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.