State: Lawmakers spar over rejection of grants

TALLAHASSEE -- A decision by House members to reject the use of federal grants for women's health and food for the poor led to a war of words Thursday between the Legislature's two top top Republican leaders.

Senate President Jim King, R-Jacksonville, suggested that the House put politics above women's health when it refused Wednesday to let the Department of Health spend a $1-million federal grant to educate women about the risks of stroke, heart disease and breast cancer. He took it personally, saying his bill helped secure the grant.

"I don't know whether this was a message being sent or not, but if so, I can't imagine why you'd put women's health at risk for political reasons," King said. "Unless I am missing a subtlety that I haven't seen or understood, I thought it was a mistake. I thought it was treating Florida's women poorly."

House Speaker Johnnie Byrd, R-Plant City, who orchestrated Wednesday's vote by his House colleagues, called King's comments "a smokescreen."

Byrd said five House members on a 14-member budget review panel acted properly by insisting that the entire House vote on the grants or that more detail be provided on how the money will be spent. Byrd said the grants would be voted on again at a future meeting. Senators on the panel voted unanimously to accept the money right away.

"We're not going to lose any federal grants," Byrd said. "I'm sorry that that kind of demagoguery makes it into the system, but we're going to take the high road and keep doing what is good for people."

What's at stake, Byrd said, is the process for reviewing agency budget adjustments, not the merits of the programs themselves. He called the Senate's talk a "red herring" and said the budget panel would review the same budget requests next month.

Gov. Jeb Bush urged House members to "revisit" their decisions to block federal funds that cost the state nothing.

"Federal money that doesn't have strings attached to it is a good thing, by and large," Bush said. "During these times, it probably makes sense to revisit that."

The grant, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, would pay for a public awareness campaign to help women lower the risk of stroke, heart disease and breast cancer. Five House members who serve on the Legislative Budget Commission voted Wednesday to deny the Department of Health the use of the money, saying the full Legislature should vote on such requests. The five included Pinellas County Republican Reps. Gus Bilirakis of Palm Harbor and Leslie Waters of Seminole.

The commission also refused to approve a $16,543 surplus-food grant for the state Department of Agriculture. The agency was told to resubmit the request next month.

"It is our money," King said. "Florida is a donor state. We give more money than we get from Washington, and now we get Washington to give us money, and whoa, we are saying, "Send it back.' Georgia will say, "Thank you.' "

King said he had extended an olive branch to the House, but he wondered whether the House was using it "to whip me to death."

The budget commission was formed about two years ago with a bill King sponsored. It reviews budget changes that happen when lawmakers aren't in session. Before that, such transfers were reviewed by the governor and Cabinet out of public view.

-- Times staff writer Alisa Ulferts contributed to this report.

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