Georgia budget may cut university funds, boost scholarships

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Blake Tillery, R- Vidilia, walks down the Senate floor on Crossover Day at the Georgia State Capitol, March 6, 2023. Tillery’s committee passed a bill that cuts higher education funding as part of a larger dispute. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

The Georgia Senate passed a budget on Thursday that cuts $87 million from teaching at the state’s public universities, money connected to a dispute with the House over hospital permits and funding.

The Senate and House face a deadline of next Wednesday, the last day of the 2023 legislative session, to work out differences.

Senators voted 51-1 for House Bill 19, which would spend $32.4 billion in state money in the 2024 year beginning July 1. Counting federal and other money, the state would spend nearly $56 billion.