The Senate Appropriations Committee easily passed an $18 billion budget Tuesday morning for the rest of this fiscal year that would add money to help the Department of Revenue do a better job processing tax returns and answering questions from the public.
The spending plan, which goes before the full Senate on Wednesday, also includes $8 million for airport improvement projects for airports outside of Atlanta. Most of the money for the projects would come from the federal government.
The House has already approved a midyear budget, which runs through June 30. For the most part, both chambers are going along with the spending plan proposed in January by Gov. Nathan Deal. The biggest increase in spending is to pay for increased school enrollment.
The Senate version adds $225,000 to add temporary workers to staff call centers at the Department of Revenue. It also includes an extra $1.5 million for temporary workers to help process tax returns. Senate Appropriations Chairman Jack Hill, R-Reidsville, said the appropriations will help the state do a better job of handling tax collections and customer service.
The Senate plan reduced the amount Deal wanted to allocate for the rural economic development program OneGeorgia from $19 million to $4 million. But Hill said more money would be included in the budget for fiscal 2012, which begins July 1.
After the full Senate approves a midyear spending plan, House and Senate leaders will negotiate the differences between the chambers' budget proposals.
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