LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, R, presented a $48.2 billion 2012-2013 budget proposal to state lawmakers Thursday.
Snyder also is proposing a tentative budget for the year after and a supplemental budget for the current year.
The last budget produced a $728 million surplus, putting the state in the black for the first time in a decade.
Snyder said he wants to use the surplus and anticipated increases in revenue to restore some of the cuts made last year and invest in efforts to accelerate economic growth.
The proposed budget would allocate funding for Medicaid and the MIChild health care program to provide more benefits for children with autism.
The proposal also would set aside $15 million to help insurers cover the cost of autism treatments, and it would expand the Healthy Kids dental program.
The state would put $130 million in its rainy day fund. The $255 million contribution the state made this year is the first deposit the state has put in the fund since 2004.
The budget proposal includes no any changes in tax policy.
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