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Tuesday, January 16, marked the beginning of what we refer to as, “budget week.” The only thing that we are constitutionally required to do during our 40-day session is pass a balanced budget. While balancing a budget seems simple enough, when dealing with billions of dollars, it can be quite challenging. Over the last week, House and Senate Appropriations Committees held a series of joint budget hearings, which gave us the chance to closely examine Governor Kemp’s recommendations. As our state’s fiscal year begins July 1, we are in the first stages of crafting two budget bills: The full 2025 Fiscal Year budget and the 2024 Amended Fiscal Year budget. This Update: 2024 Amended Fiscal Year Budget 2025 Full Fiscal Year Budget |
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Budget week is arguably the most important week of session. This begins the process of how we decide to spend YOUR hard-earned taxpayer dollars. Therefore, we must work to ensure we account for every penny. Georgia, very smartly, works on a zero-based budget system. Zero-based budgeting means we toss out a portion of the current budget annually and start with a fresh slate. Prior to this system, budget spends would simply pile up year after year. Learn more about the Zero Based Budgeting Process 2024 Amended Fiscal Year- Spending Changes Presenting before a joint hearing of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, Governor Kemp made his recommendations for the state budget. Changes to the 2024 budget will reflect a more accurate estimate of state revenue obtained over the last year while accounting for discrepancies between the projected estimate and actual revenue received. Highlighted below are a few of the suggested spending changes, which includes a taxpayer refund proposal.
2025 Full Fiscal Year Budget Last week, Governor Kemp announced that the 2025 fiscal year budget proposal is set for an estimated $36 billion. The governor listed his funding recommendations, and as expected, education and healthcare remain at the forefront of budget funding. Public safety, transportation and general government round out the top spends respectively. Included in Governor Kemps proposal is a plan to provide state employees with a cost-of-living increase. Below is a highlight of Governor Kemp’s 2025 FY budget proposals, now under consideration before the House Appropriation Committee: Education
Healthcare
Public Safety
Transportation
What’s Next? Although budget week has technically come to an end, our work is far from over. House Appropriation subcommittees will further study budget proposals, eventually passing portions of the suggested budget out of their respective committees. Following this process, those individually passed budgets will then go before the full House Appropriations Committee. Soon after, the budget will receive a full vote on the House floor. When passed by the House, it then moves over to the Senate, where the process begins all over again. The Senate will either agree with House proposals or make their own changes. Once both chambers agree on the budget, it goes to the Governor’s desk for his approval and signature. We will keep you updated on anything specific to our region. |
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| By the Numbers….
Every citizen is impacted by our state budget. Here is quick highlight to show a few examples of what we take into consideration for budget allocations. Source: Georgia Budget Policy Institute |
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Budget Links Keep track of budget happenings through these helpful links! |
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If you have questions, concerns, are interested in learning more about our budget process or capital projects happening in our area, please feel free to reach out to us directly. As always, thank you for allowing me the honor of serving as your voice under the Gold Dome. May God bless you and keep you, may He continue to bless the great state of Georgia. Respectfully, Stan Gunter Representative of Georgia’s 8th District |