(The Center Square) – With the session expected to drag past Friday’s scheduled end date, Florida lawmakers are far apart on a budget and neither side seems ready to compromise.
The Senate budget proposal is $117.4 billion, about $4.4 billion more than the House’s proposed outlay of $113 billon. Gov. Ron DeSantis’ proposed budget is $115.6 billion.
Tuesday is the deadline for a budget conference committee resolution to be completed. The state constitution requires a 72-hour period before the conference report can be voted on by both chambers.
The Legislature can either continue the session past Friday or return later before the July 1 deadline, when the new fiscal year begins. Senate leaders say the latter is likely.
During a Monday news conference, Sen. Ed Hooper, R-Palm Harbor, said that the two chambers will take a break this weekend and come back on Monday.
The chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, referencing Speaker Daniel Perez, says the two sides are “very close on the number.”
“We know what the priority of the speaker and we’re trying to meet him at an affordable number,” Hooper said. “We’re not going to be done by Friday, but hopefully, we’ll have a good start on a solution by Friday.”
The biggest point of contention is tax relief. The House has its $5 billion plan that would reduce the state’s sales tax rate from 6% to 5.25%.
The Senate has a more cautious $2.5 billion proposal that would depend on both recurring and one-time savings with a sales tax exemption for clothing and shoes that cost less than $75 and several tax holidays. The Senate also wants to halve the state’s business rent tax from 2% to 1%, something that the House is also seeking.
“We’re contemplating historic tax relief for Floridians,” Senate President Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, said at Monday’s news conference. “I don’t want that to get lost. We’re just trying to figure out how it all comes together.”
One area the two sides are far apart is K-12 education, where the House wants to appropriate $30.9 billion and the Senate is seeking $31.7 billion, a difference of $814.8 million.
The extra days in session for lawmakers will cost taxpayers to cover lawmakers’ pay and per-diem costs.
According to an analysis by WESH TV, a special session day costs taxpayers on average about $50,000 per day.
