The Alabama Legislature sent its 2025 general fund budget proposal to Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday, moving closer to final approval of next year's education trust fund budget and this year's supplemental school funding bill.
The Senate has agreed to most of the House's minor amendments to the $3.3 billion budget, Gov. Kay Ivey announced Tuesday. she's gonna sign, Emphasis on increasing law enforcement and mental health.
“This general fund is solid and will go a long way toward making Alabama a great place to live, work, and raise a family,” Ivey said in a statement.
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This budget, which comes into effect from October 1st, Includes a 2% pay increase for state employees. and increases funding for most state agencies.
The Senate also agreed to a supplemental general fund bill for this fiscal year totaling about $256 million. Passed by the Second House Committee. Most of that spending ($150 million) will go toward prison construction. The state is currently building a 4,000-bed men's prison in Elmore County, which is expected to cost more than $1 billion.
The $9.3 billion Education Trust Fund budget was presented to a conference committee on Tuesday, but the bill's sponsor, House Ways and Means and Education Committee Chairman Danny Garrett (R-Trussville), revealed little. This is a minor change.
of $9.3 billion ETF The budget includes a 2% pay increase for education employees, about 6.8% larger than this year's budget of $8.8 billion. This will increase funding for local school boards and many education programs, including the Alabama Reading Initiative and the Alabama Mathematics, Science, and Technology Initiative.
Garrett said Tuesday that the conference committee has restarted teacher development training. HB147, Appropriations for the Educational Trust Fund's Advancement and Technology Fund.there was The version that passed the House was allocated $2 million.
money not shown The version that passed the Senate.
in HB145, For major education funding, the committee moved $1.5 million from the Alabama Department of Education to the Alabama Department of Law Enforcement for school safety assessments, mapping, and grants.
The committee made further changes. HB144, This allocates an additional $651 million to education programs for the current fiscal year, which ends on September 30th. The changes included reclassifying $175,000 to the Alabama Symphony Orchestra under the Arts Council. Adds $750,000 to the Principal Leadership and Mentoring Act. More than $2 million in capital funds for the Community College System Capital Fund. He gave more than $1 million to the Arts Council and more than $1 million to the Historical Commission's grant program.
The committee also removed $5 million from the Education Retirement Fund. An Alabama education retiree has not had his cost of living benefit increased since 2007. Because such movements are costly. Lawmakers want to allow the fund to issue periodic bonuses to retirees over the long term. Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur) previously criticized the changes on the Senate floor.
“Next year, this chamber is going to start the education budget, and you can bet your money that it’s going to make a deposit to the Retirement Trust Fund for retired state educators,” he said.
Orr expressed similar sentiments about general fund employees.
“We have gone through all the trouble to establish this fund, a trust fund for retirees, and have already set up a system where money will flow into the system and benefit Alabama's education and society in the future. Didn't you try to bring in?'' General fund retirees? ” asked Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Reed, R-Jasper.
Garrett told reporters after the committee meeting that the fund needs $100 million before it can be disbursed. He also said $5 million per retiree is not a huge amount.
Garrett said the $5 million is “symbolic.”
The Senate also passed a resolution that would consider changing the state's funding formula from what is now a foundation-like program to one based on student population. Garrett told reporters that a similar bill had passed in the House.
A conference committee agreed after the House adjourned Tuesday. The earliest it could be passed by both houses is Wednesday.