“This bill was never filed until Senator Montford’s bill began to get traction and support from the Republican caucus,” Lee said. “Then another piece of legislation comes out to change the subject and then becomes the leading piece of legislation on testing reform in the Senate. That’s just wrong.”
Voting with Lee were Sen. Bill Galvano, a Bradenton Republican slated to become Senate president late next year; Sen. Gary Farmer, D-Fort Lauderdale; Sen. Debbie Mayfield, a Vero Beach Republican who serves as vice chair of the committee; and Sen. Perry Thurston, D-Fort Lauderdale.
Opposing the motion were Sen. Anitere Flores, a Miami Republican who is sponsoring the bill; Sen. David Simmons, an Altamonte Springs Republican who chairs the Senate’s education budget-writing committee and has been closely involved in the testing debate; Sen. Wilton Simpson, a Trilby Republican who is serving as a de facto chairman of the Education Committee; and Sen. Linda Stewart, D-Orlando.
The fight provided another indication of the complicated politics of testing in the Legislature, and particularly in the Senate. Many Republicans side with the education accountability movement, spearheaded by former Gov. Jeb Bush during his time in office and since promoted by the Foundation for Florida’s Future, an organization set up by Bush.
