(The Center Square) – Florida lawmakers are taking a week off before resuming the session on May 12 to work on the state’s unfinished budget, a possible tax cut and legislation that would help rural communities.
The extended session is supposed to end on June 6, sine die, which is a Latin phrase for no appointed date to resume.
Both sides say a budget framework has been reached with a smaller tax cut – $2.8 billion – than the $5 billion package the House requested. The sides were about $4.4 billion apart on the budget’s top line before negotiations commenced.
The Senate budget proposal was about $117.4 billion compared to House’s outlay of $113 billon.
Florida House Speaker Daniel Perez says the final number will be less than Gov. Ron DeSantis’ proposed budget of $115.6 billion, but how much less has yet to be revealed.
House leaders say that a cut to the state’s sales tax rate of 6% will definitely be part of any tax relief package. The Senate sought a smaller tax relief package that included sales tax relief on clothing and shoes costing less than $75.
“There is no question we have more work to do,” Senate President Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, said in a release. “Floridians expect and deserve a balanced budget that reduces state spending, lowers per capita spending and reduces the growth of state bureaucracy.
“I am committed to working with our partners in the Florida House to pass a budget that reduces debt, accounts for significant, broad-based tax relief and maintains historic state reserves for emergencies. We have a responsibility to safeguard taxpayer dollars and improve accountability, transparency, and oversight of government spending. Floridians can count on us to get the job done.”
The Senate wanted a full package for what it has termed a “Rural Renaissance,” while the House separated some of these initiatives into other bills.
Senate Bill 110 would allocate $200 million to expand education offerings, increase health care availability for rural residents and help modernize commerce
