The Alabama Legislature has approved a compromise General Fund budget that increases funding for courts and prisons.
The Senate and House voted Thursday night for a compromise budget developed by six legislators. The $1.74 billion budget for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1 is 0.4 percent larger than the current budget. It provides more than $5 million extra for the court system and nearly $17 million extra for prisons. Many other programs, including Medicaid and state troopers, will get about the same amount they are receiving this year. The budget does not include a cost-of-living raise for state workers, who got their last raise in October 2008.
Earlier in the day, the Legislature approved a nearly $5.8 billion education budget. Both budgets now go to the governor for review.