The Georgia House on Friday approved an $18.25 billion spending plan for the upcoming year that would cut funding for colleges and raise health insurance premiums for state employee, teachers and retirees by 20 percent.
The House voted 132-33 to approve the budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. It now heads to the Senate.
Lawmakers are trying to make up for the loss of more than $1 billion in federal stimulus funding that has helped prop up state finances the past few years.
While state funding for K-12 schools would remain the same, total school spending, including federal money, would decline next year. Many school districts had to furlough teachers and cut school days from the calendar even with the stimulus money this year.
The fiscal 2012 budget would cut funding to the University System of Georgia by about $75 million. State university funding for next year would be about $300 million less than in fiscal 2009.
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