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Tennessee House passes $37 billion budget

Debate on Gov. Bill Haslam's road and bridge funding bill takes place in the House of Representatives on Wednesday, April 19, 2017, in Nashville, Tenn. A Republican effort to remove Tennessee's first gas tax hike since 1989 from Gov. Bill Haslam's road and bridge funding bill was soundly defeated in the House on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey) Debate on Gov. Bill Haslam's road and bridge funding bill takes place in the House of Representatives on Wednesday, April 19, 2017, in Nashville, Tenn. A Republican effort to remove Tennessee's first gas tax hike since 1989 from Gov. Bill Haslam's road and bridge funding bill was soundly defeated in the House on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

By Andy Sher May 5, 2017 1 min read

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee House today passed the state’s $37 billion spending plan today after patching up Thursday’s blow up in which GOP leaders lost control.

The vote was 83-2.

The bill now goes to the Senate which under an agreement, House leaders say, will accept an amendment that sifts $55 million in one-time money from the state Transportation Department and gives it to counties.

On Thursday, a coalition of hard-right Republicans and minority Democrats “hijacked” the budget, in the words of one leader, and amended it to the point it was unbalanced

Those amendments were stripped from the bill.