Budget Allocations Held Up

The Florida Legislature was unable to reach agreement on funding allocations in the fiscal 2012 budget before taking the week off for the Easter and Passover holidays. The House is proposing a $66.5 billion budget, while the Senate’s version is $70.1 billion.

The state is facing a funding gap of more than $3.6 billion.

When lawmakers return, they will have only two weeks to resolve differences. Some observers have suggested that the impasse could set the stage for an extended session.

The regular session ends May 6.

Some of the budget disagreements involve school funding as well as changes to the state’s pension plan and Medicaid program,

Gov. Rick Scott has been critical of funding plans on the table, which do not include some of his proposals to cut taxes. His $65.87 billion budget recommendation in early February proposed to slash state government spending by more than $5 billion over two years, reduce corporate income and school property taxes by $2 billion, and spend significantly less in new bond financing.

The Republican governor slashed bond financing in his budget to only $331.3 million — the lowest level authorized in more than a decade. The current year’s budget authorized $885.6 million of debt.

The bonding amount authorized in the state House and Senate budgets for fiscal 2012 was not immediately available, but Republicans leading both chambers have indicated their aversion to debt ­financing.

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
MORE FROM BOND BUYER