State Leaders Approve $38.5 Billion Budget

Tennessee lawmakers have signed off on a $38.5 billion spending plan for the upcoming fiscal year, which includes funding for providing Medicaid assistance to disabled children, pay hikes for correctional officers and boosting the state’s rainy-day account.
Lawmakers had been split on several key budget items, disagreeing over the best way to fund the $27.3 million so-called Katie Beckett program among other differences.
However, as of Tuesday, lawmakers had settled on a compromise and advanced the budget outline for fiscal year 2019-2020.
Tennessee is currently the only state in the United States that does not have a program offering coverage for children with significant disabilities living at home.
Meanwhile, correctional officers will receive a pay increase and the state’s emergency funds will be boosted to $1.1 billion.