By Maggie Lee
Georgia Online News Service
ATLANTA — Georgia’s 2010 budget is now in the hands of the state Senate after a Republican-led House agreement on how to appropriate a $38.8 billion dollar budget.
The House tally, 123-49, reflected Republican support and Democratic ire.
“There will be some suffering and complaining but I believe what you have before you is a good balanced budget that ensures you that in the state of Georgia, when economic growth begins again. … I believe that we’re establishing a foundation,” said Sen. Ben Harbin (R-Evans), as he shepherded the bill through the House vote. It includes about $2 billion in cuts compared to the 2009 fiscal year budget.
But for House Democrats, the balance comes at too high a cost: no property tax cuts.
“By not funding Homeowner Tax Relief Grants, Georgians will now receive the largest property tax increase in Georgia history at a time when Georgia families are struggling to pay the mortgage, their utility bills and put food on the table,” argues Rep. DuBose Porter (D-Dublin).
He estimates the grant could have saved homeowners an average of about $300 per year.
The Georgia Department of Education comes in for the largest slice of state money, at some $7.5 billion, supplemented by another $2 billion in federal dollars. Coupled with state and federal funds for the state university system, the grand total comes to nearly $15 billion.
Due to federal stimulus dollars, cuts aren’t as deep as they might be, says Harbin. The Department of Education’s budget will be cut by a net $220 million.
The new budget trims some $112 million from the equalization grant program, which distributes funds to school systems with smaller tax bases. There’s still about $400 million in the fund, according to Harbin. “We’re having to set other things as priorities,” he says.
Also gone are the $100 gift cards for K-12 teachers to use on equipping the classroom — a total of $11 million.
Porter counters, “We shouldn’t allow economic times to be an excuse for not funding things when there is an alternative.”
He claims a point-of-sale collection of sales tax — basically a more efficient way to collect taxes, sometimes using private firms — would have brought the state an extra $1 billion without raising taxes.
Porter co-authored such a bill earlier this year, though it was never referred to a committee.
Health is the second largest expenditure, though most of the Department of Community Health’s budget comes from federal sources; only $2 billion of an $11.6 billion budget is Georgia money.
Part of some $200 million in stimulus dollars are going to prop up the state’s Medicaid spending. Governor Sonny Perdue proposed cutting payments to some Medicaid healthcare providers by six to ten percent. Now there will be no cut, says Harbin.
Instead, the House cut some $100 million that Perdue proposed appropriating to in a more earmarked way to nursing homes, doctors and several state programs.
There’s also an appropriation of another $73 million in state dollars for Medicaid benefits growth and to pay off prior year depletion.
Legislators also trimmed some curated pork out of the budget.
The Golf Hall of Fame Authority loses its whole budget of $100,000 as it goes private. The Georgia Music Hall of Fame, Georgia Sports Hall of Fame Authority and the Civil War Commission lose about $350,000 among them as they are also expected to become self-sufficient. Macon Rep. David Lucas decried the cut to the Macon music museum.
The whole budget is a 101-page document. The Senate will likely consider it next week.
Maggie Lee specializes in quality of life topics, Atlanta’s international communities and general reporting. She covers Georgia economic development and the Chinese community as a stringer for China Daily and chronicles life in Georgia’s most diverse county for the DeKalb Champion. [full bio]
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