Conway Asks For Exemption From Budget Cuts For Attorneys

State prosecutors in Kentucky say Governor Steve Beshear’s proposed budget cuts could be damaging to the legal system.To cope with a $456 million shortfall, Beshear has asked all state agencies to reduce their budgets by 4%. Attorney General Jack Conway has asked that county and commonwealth’s attorneys be exempt from those cuts.Conway’s spokesperson Allison Martin says most of their budgets go to salaries, and cutting those funds would mean taking prosecutors out of the courts.“There’s been talk of furloughing. There’s been talk of layoffs," she says. "So there are a lot of options that commonwealth’s and county attorneys across the state of Kentucky are talking about to try and deal with these proposed budget cuts.”Martin says her office hasn’t heard from Beshear about the exemption, but she expects an answer soon.