By AP/KWMU
Jefferson City, MO. – Governor Matt Blunt has vetoed nearly $36 million from the budget approved by lawmakers for the upcoming fiscal year.
The governor says the cuts were needed to bring the $19.2 billion budget into balance. The new fiscal year begins July 1.
Blunt eliminated all state funding for research on Alzheimer's disease. He also cut one-fourth of the budget for the state's tourism division, and roughly $15 million in state and federal Medicaid spending on pharmaceuticals.
Many of the line-item vetoes affected programs for which the Legislature approved more money than the Republican governor had proposed.