This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

A day after committing to as much as $400 million in new education dollars next year, Gov. Gary Herbert's office backtracked Friday, saying that the target was for new spending over the next few years.

Herbert set the lofty goal in a meeting with The Salt Lake Tribune editorial board on Thursday, saying that he planned to include between $350 million and $400 million in new education funding in his budget proposal in December.

The figure would presumably include both K-12 education, as well as higher education. But on Friday, his deputy chief of staff, Mike Mower, clarified that it would take a few years, not just one year, for the spending to reach that level.

Under the Utah Constitution, all income tax revenue goes to fund education.

State economists have projected about $190 million in growth in the education fund, meaning Herbert's goal would be more than double that amount.

Herbert has touted his support for education during his re-election bid, pointing to $1.8 billion in new money pumped into education in recent years.

That includes both public schools and the state's colleges and universities, much of it for building construction on college campuses.

All told, K-12 spending during Herbert's tenure has grown by $403 million, according to figures from legislative analysts. According to 2014 figures from the Census Bureau — the most recent numbers available — per pupil spending had fallen from $6,583 to $6.500 since Herbert took office.

Utah remains last in the nation in per pupil spending.

Herbert's Democratic opponent, Mike Weinholtz, has criticized Herbert for not doing more for schools and says he would raise taxes on upper-income Utahns and stop funding colleges and universities with income taxes, instead shifting all of the money to public schools.

Twitter: @RobertGehrke