Topeka ? The controversial statue for the Capitol dome will be set in place during the first week of October, officials said Friday.

Workers are preparing the dome to hold the 21-foot statue of a Kansa Indian shooting an arrow into the sky.

The $750,000 cost to reinforce the dome has been criticized by some officials as frivolous in a tight economy.

But Gov. Bill Graves has been adamant in keeping the project on course.

Officials told the Legislative Coordinating Council, which is composed of legislators from the House and Senate, that the statue would be placed on top of the dome in about two months.

The council also told staff members to prepare to cut the Legislature’s budget.

Later this month, Graves is expected to announce budget cuts because of slumping tax revenues. But under the law, Graves cannot cut the Legislature’s budget.

Legislative leaders, however, said they would cut their budget to match cuts felt by other agencies.

The legislative staff also was told to lower the proposed pay for legislators to $74.98 from $78.75 per day for the next fiscal year.

Under a complex arrangement, $74.98 per day is the base legislative salary and an extra appropriation has been made for each of the past several years that is equal to the average increase in the state civil-service pay.

Architects also told the panel that cracks appearing in several Statehouse walls were not indications of structural damage but the result of normal settling as major reconstruction occurs on the north side of the Capitol. The building is still safe for occupants, officials were told.