House and Senate start debate today on budget differences
TALLAHASSEE — Lawmakers will begin debate today on two very different budget plans, with the House proposal about $4 billion lighter overall than the Senate version.
The bottom-line differences are smaller — the Senate budget for the year beginning July 1 officially weighs in at $83.2 billion, compared to $81.2 billion for the House — but the Senate doesn’t account for $2 billion in higher-education tuition.
After both chambers vote on their proposals — probably on Thursday — formal negotiating will begin, with legislative leaders first having to decide how much money to devote to each area of the budget before conference committees hammer out agreements on how to spend each pot.
If lawmakers want to leave Tallahassee by May 5 as scheduled, all the discussions have to be finished by May 2 to allow for a constitutionally required 72-hour “cooling off ” period before a final vote is taken.
Here are some high-profile issues lawmakers will face:
Public education
Some of the sharpest differences bet ween the t wo budgets are in public education — which includes divi- sions over teacher incentives, property taxes and a House plan to spur charter school creation near academically struggling schools.
The Senate is far more generous in the main funding formula for elementary and secondary education, increasing the per-student spending by almost $210 a head, about 2.91 percent. By contrast, the House would boost it by a shade over $19 per student, or about 0.27 percent.
The two sides are also far apart on funding for higher education, and state universities in particular. The Senate would spend $5.1 billion on the state university system, compared with $4.6 billion from the House.
Economic incentives For Gov. Rick Scott, the ses- sion’s highest priority might be what the Legislature does in this area of the budget.
House lawmakers have repeatedly bucked Scott and approved legislation to eliminate Enterprise Florida, the state’s business-recruitment agency. The House budget stays true to that, giving no money to Enterprise Florida and $25 million for Visit Florida, which promotes tourism to the state.
The Senate proposal would set aside more than $80 million for programs tied to Enterprise Florida and devote $76 million to Visit Florida.
Pay raises
Broad-based raises for state employees have been rare since the financial crisis, and Senate Appropriations Chairman Jack Latvala, R-Clearwa- ter, has set an increase as one of his top priorities. In all, the Senate plan would boost pay for state workers by $219.7 million.
Most state employees would get an increase of $1,400 if they make $40,000 or less a year, while those who make more than $40,000 would get a $1,000 boost. Other employees, mostly in law enforcement and the judicial branch, would get specialized raises.
That’s not the case in the House plan, which has specialized increases but not the broader-based raises offered by the Senate.
Health care
There are substantial gaps between the two chambers on how much to provide for hospitals and other health care needs. Under the Senate proposal, the Agency for Health Care Administration — which directs much of the Medicaid program — would check in at $27.7 billion, while the House has set aside $26.4 billion.
The Senate budget includes $607.8 million in money for hospital aid from the federal government that might not materialize.