The Georgia state legislature may or my not step in to help the Tour de Georgia continue.
The state's midyear budget adjustment initially included $1 million in funding for the race, but on Wednesday, the state Senate removed the appropriation from the budget.
Chris Aronhalt of Medalist Sports promised that this year's race will run as scheduled, with every vendor being paid.
Whether it returns for a sixth time in 2008 is another question. "It's almost needed for this event to continue," he said of the one-time appropriation from the state. If the $1 million is not approved, he said, it would be "one heck of a serious challenge for Medalist to overcome."
The Senate also removed $50 million in conservation funding, $40 million in incentives for a Kia plant in west Georgia, and a program championed by Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue to promote fishing tourism (More on the coming budget fight).
The state is already the largest sponsor of the race, through its Department of Economic Development, which is contributing $400,000 to promote tourism.
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