LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP, abc24.com) - A federal appeals court says Arkansas can't cut off funding for desegregation programs in Little Rock-area school districts without a separate hearing and judge's order.
The Wednesday ruling from the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals comes months after U.S. District Judge Brian Miller ordered an end to most of the payments.
State lawmakers have argued the payments are wasteful and want them to end and Miller called them counterproductive.
The state has been spending about $38 million per year to help finance magnet schools that help keep a racial balance in the Little Rock, North Little Rock and Pulaski County school districts and the districts say they still need the money.
The appeals court's ruling keeps the money flowing until the matter is resolved in a separate court proceeding.
