Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — More than 100 protesters at the Oklahoma state Capitol have called for the Legislature to scrap a proposed budget deal and designate more state money for public education.
Members of the protest group on Thursday marched from a nearby high school and rallied in the Capitol rotunda, telling lawmakers to call a special session.
Leaders in the Legislature have been hammering out a budget deal that covers about $969 million of a $1.3 billion projected budget shortfall, requiring state agencies to absorb about $360 million in cuts from last year's appropriations.
House Rep. Mike Shelton, a Democrat, says lawmakers for years have not properly funded public education.
Supporters of the budget say it does enough through revenue increases and bond measures to prevent devastating cuts to core services, including education.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
