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Governor Nixon releases $5.6 million in withheld funds

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Governor J. Nixon

Governor Jay Nixon has released more than $5.6 million in withheld funds. Nixon withheld the money in June to balance the state's budget and decided to release it on Wednesday. The budget was $800 million out of balance. This money will be set aside for scholarships, library programs, pharmacy assistance and technology startups. Governor Nixon continues holding back a portion of the money for these programs.

“Frankly the Governor is not going to spend money that we don’t have to spend, he’s got the obligation to make sure that we stay within our bounds on the budget,” said Scott Holste, spokesman for the Governor.

Missouri Department of Higher Education will receive $3 million for its scholarship programs. Nixon hasn't released yet the remaining $11 million dollars he withheld from the program in June.

"The department is not going to be able to fully reimburse the tuition, but now that those funds have been released we will be able to cover more of that tuition cost," said Liz Coleman, Director of Communications for the Missouri Department of Higher Education.

The Governor also withholds 14 million from the Department of Economic Development, and 2.7 million from public library programs. Scott Holste also said that they don’t know yet when the rest of the withheld funds will finally be released. 

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