More state aid means that Richmond-area schools will be able to offer pre-kindergarten classes to more at-risk 4-year-olds in the fall, but lack of classroom space remains a bottleneck.

On Thursday, state lawmakers budgeted an additional $22 million to expand the Virginia Preschool Initiative -- less than half the increase Gov. Timothy M. Kaine asked for.

For the next two years beginning in July, the state will spend $122 million in taxpayer money on the pre-K program, compared with $100 million in the previous two-year budget.

Kaine, who asked for $56 million, said that though he wanted more he does not expect to amend the General Assembly's pre-K level.

"This year was a battle of -- is doing more pre-K for at-risk kids a good thing or not -- and the legislature overwhelmingly said yes," Kaine said by phone yesterday.

The formula for distributing money for the initiative takes into account the number of 4-year-olds in a locality and the percentage of those children who qualify for free lunches. Children who qualify for Head Start or other federal aid are not included.

Sen. R. Edward Houck, a member of the Senate budget committee and a 34-year educator, said the $22 million is "a significant increase, not as much as I would like to have had, but it's difficult economic times."

Currently, 26 state localities do not offer the pre-K program, including three in the Richmond region -- Colonial Heights, New Kent County and Sussex County -- mostly because their share of the cost was disproportionately high, Houck said.

So legislators capped the amount any locality would pay at 50 percent per student.

"It'll create more slots, no doubt about that," Houck said.

In a report to legislators assembled by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission in the fall, Colonial Heights, New Kent and Sussex all cited a lack of space as one reason they didn't offer the classes. Virginia Preschool Initiative dollars can't be use for capital building projects.

The amount spent per child will increase from $5,700 to $6,000 under the new state budget.

Statewide, more than 4,600 additional children could be in pre-K programs in the next two years, Houck said.

Part of that increase would come from localities opting to start the program.

Local school administrators whose localities already are participating in the initiative said the money will help expand their programs.

Henrico County has about 100 children in the initiative. Jean Murray, assistant superintendent for instruction for Henrico, said the district plans to add 68 more slots to pre-K for this fall. The biggest factor preventing more children from entering was classroom space, she said.

Richmond city schools will add 36 pre-K spots this fall for a total of 881, and the state money would help buy supplies and outfit an anticipated pre-K classroom, said Ron Robertson, coordinator for the pre-K program.

In Chesterfield County, school officials plan to hold enrollment in the pre-K program at the same levels as this past year.

"Since this is our first year, we wanted to make sure the program was the best quality that we could provide," said Debi Melland, instructional specialist for kindergarten. "We will not open any other [pre-K] classes next year." Contact Chris I. Young at (804) 649-6754 or cyoung@timesdispatch.com.