Gov. Sam Brownback's budget director says state hospitals for the mentally ill and developmentally disabled and the agency that runs them could lose a total of nearly $46 million if lawmakers don't increase taxes.
Budget Director Shawn Sullivan said Tuesday that the state Department for Aging and Disability Services would lose $41 million during the fiscal year beginning July 1. Its four hospitals would lose nearly $5 million.
Sullivan has told lawmakers that if they don't approve tax increases, Brownback's most likely option for balancing the budget is an across-the-board cut of 6.2 percent to save $400 million.
The state's hospitals for the mentally ill in Larned and Osawatomie would lose almost $3.5 million. State hospitals for the developmentally disabled in Parsons and Topeka would lose nearly $1.3 million.
