Lawmakers challenge Gov. Kemp's policy of increasing teacher pay with budget cuts

ATLANTA - Lawmakers who write Georgia's budget question Gov. Brian Kemp's decision to pay for a teacher pay raise with budget cuts.

Top House and Senate committee chairmen said Thursday that cuts are hard to swallow when Kemp wants to spend $376 million on teacher raises.

Some agency directors tell lawmakers that they can maintain services while spending less by reorganizing or cutting underused programs.

Others tell lawmakers that less money means they will do less.

Some lawmakers ask whether a measure to increase online sales tax collections could provide extra money. But a Kemp administration official advises against relying on higher revenue projections.