NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — If a Tennessee lawmaker has a bill that requires state funding, Tuesday was a day circled on their calendar. Early in the morning, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee released his official budget amendment, spelling out what measures he's willing to put in the state budget.
Since the document spells out the winners and losers this budget cycle, in many ways, this is their version of March Madness.
"A plain vanilla amendment — it’s very straightforward, not a lot of new things or surprises," said Jim Bryson, Tennessee's Finance and Administration Commissioner.
In basketball parlance, that means there weren't many budgetary "upsets" this year.
The winners
The number one seeds, like adding one billion dollars in road improvement projects and the Governor's school voucher expansion survive and advance in the budget bracket. The Governor's office also provided funding for full TCAT scholarships, scheduled teacher raises and more state troopers and TBI agents.
Some budgetary newcomers, like allocating $10 million for the state to implement Artificial Intelligence and $20 million for school safety grants, are now playing for keeps.
"We’re working very diligently to make sure we do it safely and we do it well," Bryson said about using AI in state government.
The losers
But we heard more from lawmakers about the ideas in the financial loser's bracket.
"I didn’t see anything for them in here," said state Sen. Joey Hensley (R-Hohenwald) about additional funding for UT Southern's campus.
There will be no grocery sales tax reduction, elimination or holiday this year. There was also controversy over the state rejecting the federal Summer EBT program, worth about $70 million, and only allocating $3 million to implement their own, likely smaller, state program.
"I can’t get my head wrapped around why we turned down the federal money and we’re going to be serving less children," said Sen. Paul Rose, R-Dyersburg.
"I’ve certainly received a lot of correspondence from my very rural district," said state Sen. Page Walley, R-Savannah.
"We’re still spending less money on solving the problem and helping fewer kids," said state Sen. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville. "It’s just morally wrong."
What comes next for the bills not funded?
Technically, bills not included in the budget amendment aren't officially busted. Lawmakers can further amend the budget amendment. But just like a 16 seed in the Big Dance, the odds are against them. Hence all the madness.
State Sen. Bo Watson, R-Hixon, who also serves as the chair of the Senate Finance committee, warned lawmakers about federal funding drying up in the coming years. He says two things are happening at the same time — federal COVID funding is winding down and President Donald Trump's team is slashing a lot of federal funding and grants.
It means the state budget could have to be tightened even more in the years to come.
If you'd like to read more about the 2026 proposed budget and budget amendments, tap the links.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at Chris.Davis@NewsChannel5.com.
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