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Illinois governor to release all agriculture moneySPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP)--Gov. Rod Blagojevich will release all the $38 million in agriculture money that had been tied up in a state budget standoff, plus an additional $32 million, his office said May 2. Aides said a day earlier the governor planned to release money for the University of Illinois Extension, soil and water conservation and agriculture research, but they didn't specify whether the programs would get all the disputed money or just part. But Kelley Quinn, spokeswoman for Blagojevich's budget office, said May 2 the programs will get all of an estimated $38 million the governor withheld to help fill a budget deficit. He will also release an additional $32 million for programs that include college work-study reimbursements, community college grants for veterans, medical research grants and education programs, she said. Blagojevich is pressing the Illinois House to let him fill a $750 million budget gap by dipping into a variety of special funds at his discretion. If legislators don't give him that power, Quinn said, he'll consider slowing down Medicaid payments to doctors and hospitals, delaying school aid payments or cutting funds to universities and community colleges. "It could be a combination of those things," she said. To get their money, agriculture programs have to send paperwork for the governor's office to process before the state comptroller can write the checks, Quinn said. "How fast they get paid depends on how fast the comptroller pays them out," she said. About $18 million will go to the University of Illinois Extension, $7 million to soil and water conservation districts and $5 million to county fairs, she said. Another $4.4 million will go to the Illinois Food and Agricultural Research and $3.9 million will go to the 4-H youth program and various agriculture groups. The Democratic governor reversed course on withholding the grants amid pressure from state senators. The cuts caused programs to lay off workers and close offices around the state. Blagojevich's critics have accused him of blocking the money to force lawmakers to give him more spending authority. Some noted he released the money on the same day the Senate killed a constitutional amendment that would have let voters recall the governor.
Date: 6/5/08
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