Highlights of Deal’s Budget

Posted on January 24th, 2013 in Georgia News

Anyone have more details? You can post them to this thread or email them to bridget.cantrell[at]gmail.com and I’ll update the post.

$830 million in construction projects but no new major programs
More than $300 million to pay for growth in k-12 school enrollment and provide extra money to poorer school systems
The state would borrow about $400 million for new school and university facilities.
Two of the biggest college projects: $58.8 million for a new law school/humanities building at Georgia State University and $45 million for a cancer research building at Georgia Regents University in Augusta.
The spending plan also includes $70 million for water and sewer projects — including money for new reservoirs — $50 million for dredging the fast-growing Port of Savannah, and $11.75 million for the College Football Hall of Fame, which is relocating from Indiana to Atlanta.

The Republican has proposed a $40.8 billion spending plan for the financial year starting in July, along with amending the current budget to account for less-than-anticipated tax collections and growing health care costs.
Deal asked lawmakers to approve roughly $13 million to restore 10 days of instruction that were eliminated from a pre-kindergarten education program in earlier rounds of budget cuts.
The governor also proposed a modest 3 percent increase for recipients of the lottery funded HOPE scholarship.
He requested $50 million to nearly complete the state’s promised contribution toward a project to deepen the Port of Savannah.
The Republican also asked lawmakers to support legislation that would authorize the Board of Community Health to levy a tax on hospitals that is set to expire this year. The tax, which raises roughly $230 million annually, is used as state matching money to secure another $400 million-plus of federal support for the Medicaid program.

This week, it was Barge’s duty to go before state lawmakers to explain educational spending in Gov. Nathan Deal’s $19.8 billion proposed budget for next year. Unless you had the document in front of you, you would never have known that Deal had shrunk Barge’s central office budget from $87 million to $27 million.
Much of that $60 million removed from Barge’s central office budget was shifted to other pots in the state education budget – perhaps to make them easier to remove from Barge’s control at a later date.
Next year, Barge’s budget will be docked for the entire cost – nearly $1 million. But GPB will be given total control of the money. (“I see,” said the blind man…and everyone watching this Chip Rogers dramedy.)

I like the idea on its face. I do wonder why the Governor approved a $10M facility (+2.5M in add’l property) in Warner Robins, but rejected a similar $4.75M facility at Fort Stewart. Maybe the author – our own Greencracker – can expound.
Another note in the article above is that [Governor Deal is] “asking the Legislature to spend an additional $6.5 million for larger Hope grants for technical college students taking [commercial driving, nursing and early childhood education classes].” We’re giving sign-on bonuses for degrees now? Wouldn’t the market (and adjusted pay for hard to fill jobs) naturally take care of that? Well played, 2.0. Well played.