Republican lawmaker sides with Democrats on emergency fund use

A key lawmaker’s trying to convince his colleagues to spare K-through-12 schools from any further budget cuts this year. The Legislature must deal with 120-millon dollars of red ink in the current state budget, and democrats propose using money in the state’s “rainy day” economic emergency fund. Republicans are reluctant to go along, but Republican Senator Jeff Lamberti of Ankeny is trying to convince his G-O-P peers to use 45-million from that rainy day account to ensure schools don’t get cut any more.Lamberti, who is chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, says democrats aim to make republicans out as the bad guys, and the move he proposes would take away some of their ammunition.Lamberti says republican legislators will pare at least 75 million from other state agencies, and those cuts will hurt.