Brownback Defends Budget Shift from Childhood Money January 19, 2016

AP) – Gov. Sam Brownback’s office is defending a budget proposal that a child advocate says would make it easier for Kansas to siphon money from early childhood education.
The Topeka Capital-Journal (http://bit.ly/1P3Izc9 ) reports that Brownback unveiled last week a state budget that would shift the entire Children’s Initiatives Fund to the State General Fund in fiscal year 2017.
The governor’s office says the move is meant to increase accountability and consolidate early childhood programs within the Kansas State Department of Education, which education commissioner Randy Watson says sought the change to better coordinate initiatives.
Shannon Cotsoradis, CEO of Kansas Action for Children, said she does not see how the move leads to better coordination.
The governor’s spokeswoman, Eileen Hawley, said existing childhood programs funded by the Children’s Initiatives Fund will be continued to be fully funded.