Senators gave tentative approval Wednesday to a $20.6 billion budget that Republican leaders say will help right North Carolina fiscal ship even as Democrats slammed cuts to schools and economic development programs.

The state Department of Health and Human Services has failed to perform adequate tests on a new Medicaid computer system set to go live July 1, according to a state audit released Wednesday.

House lawmakers voted unanimously Wednesday on a bill that would dissolve the lease for the Dorothea Dix property but offer the City of Raleigh concessions for not fighting a rewrite of the deal.

The Senate will likely give tentative approval to a $20.6 billion budget that contains $57.4 million in new government fees. Meanwhile, the House Judiciary Committee is set to consider a bill that would alter the lease for the Dorothea Dix property with the City of Raleigh.