ATLANTA — If you work for the state of Georgia, you will see a little extra money on your final paycheck of the year.
Gov. Brian Kemp announced on Monday that state employees and K-12 public school educators will receive a one-time retention bonus. The $1,000 bonus will appear on a paycheck this month.
“These are only possible because we made the hard and right decisions when it came to our budget during and after the pandemic,” Kemp said during a news conference at the state capitol. “We are able to make these investments today because we made sure the state’s economy was on sound footing.”
The governor’s office says there are currently 112,000 state employees and 196,000 teachers and school support staff members across Georgia. The cost of the supplement payments will be $330 million.
Kemp also announced on Monday that every public school in Georgia will receive $45,000 to use on school safety improvements, which will cost more than $100 million in funding.
The governor’s office said the safety funding will be included in the amended 2024 budget and 2025 proposed budget.
“What makes this latest action unique is that it will be part of the base budget every year, so schools can plan accordingly knowing that money is heading their way for this purpose,” Kemp said.
WSB-TV’s Courtney Martinez contributed to this story