Senate Appropriations approves amended FY25 budget (House Bill 67) with multi‑million storm relief and targeted investments

The Senate Appropriations subcommittee approved the amended FY25 state budget (House Bill 67) on Feb. 24, advancing an allocation the chair described as redirecting funding to storm recovery and a set of targeted investments across health care, corrections and infrastructure. Senator Robertson moved the final motion to approve the budget; Senator Walker seconded, and the measure passed unanimously, the chair said.

The chair told the committee the amended budget “creates $125,000,000 in relief,” and the package includes what he described as separate line items for agriculture and timber, local cleanup, and additional assistance for households not covered by other categories. He said the Senate’s version specifically “allocates $50,000,000 for agriculture and timber,” establishes an “$82,000,000” line for local cleanup to cover state and local matches for debris removal, and adds “$25,000,000” for households that do not qualify in other categories — all language reported from the chair during the meeting. The chair said those adjustments reflect the impact of four major storms in 2024 and aim to speed recovery in South and East Georgia.

Committee members discussed other major adjustments the chair outlined: funding to stand up a subacute therapy unit at the Veterans Nursing Home in Milledgeville ($2,000,000), an increase in correctional salaries (the chair described roughly $30,000,000 more than the governor’s request), and a reduction in some administrative positions to free up funds for storm relief. The chair said the Senate reduced or combined several line items from the House and governor’s proposals to create space for recovery spending and to prioritize infrastructure needs statewide.

Health and workforce provisions cited by the chair include a roughly $20,000,000 investment to recruit medical residencies south of State Route 540, a $1,500,000 allocation to Colquitt Regional Medical Center (the chair said the Senate cut a $3,000,000 house add for PCOM in half and redirected funds), and a narrower hospital provider funding approach limited to hospitals affected by the hurricane’s path rather than a statewide increase. The chair also noted a $100,000 line item for federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) in the storm‑affected region.

On corrections, the chair said the Senate is funding three new precast, fixed‑structure housing units (the governor requested four; the House had two) and increasing pay allocations for correctional staff to address recruitment and retention. During discussion, Senator Beach asked whether the committee could fund a fourth unit to avoid being “reactive” to federal oversight; the chair replied that adding a fourth unit would require shifting roughly $23,000,000 and that those dollars were instead directed to infrastructure and storm relief in the current package.

Transportation and infrastructure changes the chair cited include boosting the Local Assistance Road Program (LARP) by $15,000,000, a $830,000 increase for a program referred to as Veil, adjustments to the Georgia Transportation Infrastructure Bank (the Senate raised its line from the House’s $37,000,000 to about $53,000,000), and a reallocation of some freight and infrastructure funds (the chair said a $30,000,000 reduction was made while leaving an overall increase in freight and infrastructure funding relative to prior levels). The chair described the bond package as again being funded in cash this year and said the Senate restored $60,000,000 to defeasance to pay down existing bond debt earlier.

The chair said the Senate maintained funding for the Next Gen 9‑1‑1 project at the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA) and combined other lines to create a dedicated $82,000,000 item for state and local FEMA matches after the federal cleanup window was limited to 120 days. In committee questions, Senator Jones (Emmanuel) asked about the difference between the governor’s $150,000,000 emergency fund and the Senate numbers; the chair explained the Senate pulled $32,000,000 from the governor’s line and combined those dollars with other savings to form the dedicated $82,000,000 match line.

Other items the chair highlighted included funds to recapitalize a downtown development revolving loan fund ($3,000,000), materials grants for public libraries (raising the per‑capita materials grant from $0.70 to $1.00 for a one‑time increase, the chair said), and restored funding for human‑trafficking centers (adding the Macon center in addition to the Augusta center). The chair also referenced work with the Office of Planning and Budget and thanked subcommittee chairs and staff for reviewing the document over several months.

A portion of the meeting addressed policy questions rather than amendments to the bill. Senator Sims raised concerns about the scale of investments in addiction services and in drone technology for prisons; the chair acknowledged the concerns but did not describe changes to those line items during the meeting.

Separately, at the start of the meeting the committee approved its rules for the year by voice vote after a motion the transcript records as coming from Senator Beach with a second by Senator Dolezal; the chair called for the ayes and the rules motion carried.

The committee adjourned after the budget motion passed unanimously. No formal roll call of individual yes/no votes was recorded in the transcript provided.