Florida Lawmakers Need to Bridge Budget Differences
Florida News ı By USA Herald
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The two sides are also far apart on funding for higher education in general, and state universities in particular. The Senate would spend $5.1 billion on the state university system, compared to $4.6 billion from the House.
ECONOMIC INCENTIVES
For Gov. Rick Scott, the session'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 is more in line with Scott's requests. The upper chamber 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-Clearwater, 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. The raise would kick in Oct. 1. 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 --- particularly for correctional officers, an area of concern in both budgets --- 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 budget 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.
Some of those differences could be an illusion. The Senate budget includes $607.8 million in money for hospital aid from the federal government that might not materialize. The House doesn't have that funding in the budget, saying it would be irresponsible to depend on it.
But there are substantive differences as well. Both chambers would reduce hospital Medicaid reimbursements, but the House's cuts would be much deeper than the Senate's.
DEATH PENALTY
The state's budget has become part of the battle over State Attorney Aramis Ayala, elected last year as the top prosecutor in Orange and Osceola counties, who recently announced she would not pursue the death penalty in capital cases.
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