(The Center Square) — The Florida Legislature is in negotiations this week as they trade budget proposals to set the final outlay for this coming fiscal year that is expected to reach a record high.
The House and the Senate’s proposals are significantly higher than the previously expected $109.9 billion budget. Both chambers must resolve any issues by May 2, allowing for the mandatory 72-hour cooling-off period before they are able to vote for the final budget and close the legislative session on May 5.
Gov. Ron DeSantis had a few budget requests, including $30 million for recruiting law enforcement officers from out of state who will receive $5,000 bonuses if they relocate and $100 million for the state Job Growth Grant Fund that will be used for regional infrastructure projects.
The House and Senate have agreed to fund $75 million for the Job Growth Grant Fund and $20 million for law enforcement recruitment bonuses.
DeSantis also requested $100 million for higher education to recruit and retain faculty members in state colleges and universities, and his request was approved by both chambers.
Additional funding for the Florida State Guard was also requested by DeSantis to increase it from 400 members to 1,500 members. The Guard is the state’s civilian defense force separate from the state National Guard that responds to statewide emergencies.
The House approved an appropriation of $55 million with $49 million of the budget will go towards purchasing aircraft.
Northeast Florida will be receiving $700,000 in funding to build the North Florida School of Special Educational Vocational/Job Training Building Expansion that will service several north Florida counties. The facility will provide a pet bakery, an art studio and a florist.
The House approved $24 million as part of the education budget to launch the Florida School for Competitive Academics, which is part of Senate Bill 1386, sponsored by state Sen. Keith Perry, R-Gainesville.
The House also earmarked $5 million in the education budget for transportation grants that would facilitate House Bill 733, a bill that requires later start times for middle schools and high schools.
The Education Finance Program, which is the main source of funding for public schools, has a $100 million gap in funding after the House offered $26.76 billion to fund the program and the Senate countered the offer with a proposed budget of $26.65 billion. This is a $2.2 billion increase from the previous fiscal year.
On Tuesday, the House and Senate agreed to provide an additional $350 million for the Education Enrollment Stabilization Program, to prevent any funding fallout from enrollment changes after school vouchers were expanded. Schools will be able to access these funds through the Department of Education.
House Appropriations PreK-12 Chair Josie Tomkow, R-Polk City, stated that there has been solid collaboration between lawmakers to come up with a budget that works.
“We’ve done a really great job of collaborating early on, and I think what you’ll see is just that in our budget,” Tomkow said.
Lawmakers are optimistic that the outcome will be mutually beneficial for all, however, there are still gaps in spending on tourism, sea-level changes and land preservation.
For the Land Preservation Grant Program, the Senate has asked for $337 million to purchase parcels of land to limit development and keep farming and ranching operations running while the House proposed $50 million.
The proposed spending on sea-level changes has a huge gap after the House has offered a $300 million outlay, while the Senate has countered with a $179 million proposal.
Tourism has major differences, with the Senate proposing to spend $80 million on Visit Florida, a $50 million increase. The House has proposed no appropriation and is instead pushing a bill that will collect funds for Visit Florida from local tourism agencies.
The House and Senate are currently considering a project to speed up the completion of 20 highway projects that comes with a price tag of $7 billion as part of DeSantis’ “Moving Florida Forward” project. A total of $4 billion will come from the general-revenue surplus and the remaining $3 billion will be financed.
This article First appeared in the center square