JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Facing a tightening budget picture, the Missouri House inched toward passage of a $50.6 billion spending plan Tuesday that would slash funding to some state universities and child care programs but reverse proposed cuts affecting developmentally disabled Missourians.

Lawmakers spent nearly seven hours debating the 12 spending bills that will fuel state government operations for the fiscal year beginning July 1. A final, largely perfunctory vote in the Republican-controlled chamber is expected later this week before the blueprint moves to the Senate for further debate.

“Where we are at is a good place,” said House Budget Committee Chairman Dirk Deaton, R-Seneca, who batted down scores of Democratic amendments seeking to steer scant funds to pet programs.

The Senate, also controlled by the GOP, is likely to alter some parts of the evolving spending plan, which is lower than the $52.1 billion proposal outlined by Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe in January.

After enjoying significant budget surpluses following the COVID-19 pandemic, the governor predicts state spending will chew through a $2 billion surplus amassed from the surge of federal emergency relief money, leaving the state with less than $5 million in the bank at the end of the next fiscal year.

In crafting the spending package, House Budget Committee Chairman Dirk Deaton sought to cut more than Kehoe, as well as address ongoing cuts in federal aid enacted last year by President Donald Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress.

It relies on a $52 million reduction in child care subsidies, as well as a significant change in how those payments are made.

Kehoe last year proposed a plan to pay child care providers at the beginning of every month based on enrollment, but Deaton wants to continue basing payments on attendance to address possible fraud concerns, like those found last year in federally funded social service programs in Minnesota.

“We want to pay on attendance, not enrollment. We want to keep that conversation going,” Deaton said. “You look at all the problems they had in Minnesota.”

Democrats said the pay structure could put some child care providers out of business after they weathered delayed payments in previous years.

“That will impact what we’re able to pay and reimburse in the subsidy program,” said Rep. Betsy Fogle, D-Springfield, the ranking minority member of the House Budget Committee.

The overall higher education budget remains largely intact, but Deaton altered the way funds would be distributed to colleges and universities, leaving some institutions potentially facing significant cuts if the Senate goes along with his plan.

Deaton argued his proposal would force colleges and universities to justify their state funding levels.

Kehoe had sought to keep higher education funding flat, but Deaton put that money in a pool and redivided it based on the number of full-time equivalent students, with community colleges receiving about $3,650 for each and four-year universities receiving about $8,400.

Under Deaton’s plan, Missouri State University in Springfield would see a $30 million gain based on the per-student model, while the state’s two historically black universities would see significant cuts.

Harris-Stowe University in St. Louis, which has an estimated 924 full-time students, would go from $12 million in state aid to $7.7 million.

Lincoln University in Jefferson City, which has 1,770 students, would see a $9 million reduction from the $23.7 million Kehoe requested.

Truman State University in Kirksville would receive $23.8 million under the Deaton plan, rather than the $50 million Kehoe proposed during his budget address in January.

Harris-Stowe did not respond to multiple requests for comment, but a spokesman for Truman State said the school is working with House and Senate members to reverse course.

Travis Miles, director of communications at Truman, said the formula used by Deaton does not account for the university’s state-mandated role as a public liberal arts and sciences university, nor does it take into consideration Truman consistently has among the state’s highest retention and graduation rates.

“Truman State University is precisely the kind of educational institution the citizens of Missouri expect to support with their tax dollars,” Miles said.

Rep. Ed Lewis, R-Moberly, said the “draconian” change could force colleges to expand class sizes, reduce class offerings or close.

“I don’t believe any of these institutions can survive that type of reduction in one year,” Lewis said.

“This will be devastating if we were to proceed with it,” said Rep. Kathy Steinhoff, D-Columbia.

Some Republicans agreed the enrollment-based funding model could result in closures or consolidation of campuses, but were supporting it because the current funding scheme has not been changed in years.

“Let the chips fall where they may,” said Rep. Bishop Davidson, R-Republic.

The budget taking shape includes limited raises for the state’s 41,000-plus workers and the end of a $75 per month matching contribution for workers with deferred compensation programs that has been in place since 2023.

Under Kehoe’s plan, employees would receive a pay raise of 1% for every two years they have worked for the state. For workers with 20 or more years, the raises would be capped at 10%.

In other parts of the budget, Kehoe’s priorities won support, including his call for an additional $10 million to add to a $50 million outlay that pays for the state’s private school voucher program.

Democrats said public tax dollars should not go to church-affiliated schools that bar students based on religious beliefs.

The governor’s plan to cut nearly $81 million for services for adults with developmental disabilities was reversed, as was a $250,000 earmark that would have provided “a facility to educate the public on the history of Gov. (Mike) Parson’s life and administration.”

Parson was Kehoe’s predecessor.

The House proposal would tap unused money sitting in specialized funds to help balance the budget. An estimated $65 million in the state’s Blind Pension Fund, for example, will go toward public schools.

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