The South Carolina Senate has approved a $7.5 billion state budget that puts an additional $300 million into K-12 education, covers the state's expenses from last fall's historic flooding and provides $40 million in grants to flood-devastated farmers.
Senators voted Wednesday to return their spending plans for the fiscal year beginning July 1 to the House.
The Senate version spent $11 million more on school buses, bringing the total to $28 million. But senators cut in half the amount spent on replenishing sand along South Carolina's coast, to $20 million.
The chambers' plans also differ in state employees' salaries. The Senate doubled workers' cost-of-living increase to 4 percent. That would be the largest raise given to all workers since 2005.
Senators also added $2.4 million for police body cameras.