Governor Holden’s proposal to dip into the state’s Rainy Day Fund is expected to come up in the House today. But, the effort faces some tough opposition. The Senate has already approved the use of emergency reserve funds tocover the budget crunch affecting the remaining weeks of the current Fiscal Year. Governor Holden is pleased with the Senate action but he’ll need two-thirds of the House to make it happen. He sees House Republicans standing in the way of that and he doesn’t like it. House Republican Leader Catherine Hanaway of Warson Woods is opposed togiving the Governor any additional money for what she feels is a good reason. She says he’ll spend the money and spending must stop during a budget crisis. Holden says failure to borrow from the Rainy Day Fund could lead to direconsequences, including the withholding of education funds, the denial of social service benefits to the needy, and temporary layoffs of state workers.
