Budget veto brewing over school funds

Gov. Jeb Bush is threatening to reject any plan that doesn't include $120-million for his A-plus grading program.

By ALISA ULFERTS and STEVE BOUSQUET
© St. Petersburg Times
published April 10, 2003

TALLAHASSEE -- Gov. Jeb Bush said Wednesday that he will veto the entire state budget if lawmakers leave out $120-million he wants for his school grading program.

The House has earmarked $60-million of that money for teacher bonuses, and the Senate uses all of it to reduce class sizes.

But Bush said he wants the money in the hands of schools that have increased or maintained their letter grades, as measured largely by FCAT scores.

"We will fully fund a school recognition program, or the budget will have to be started over," Bush said. "This is at the heart and soul of rising student achievement in our state."

Bush has vetoed more than $1-billion worth of lawmakers' pet projects during his four years in office.

Acknowledging the gravity of the threat to veto an entire state budget prepared by fellow Republicans, Bush said Wednesday: "I've never done this before."

The House and Senate budget plans, which each chamber approved Tuesday, are $1.4-billion apart, with the Senate relying on nearly $1-billion in unspecified taxes.

While the two chambers can't agree on whether the state needs more money, they did agree not to fund the school recognition program, but for different reasons.

House Speaker Johnnie Byrd, R-Plant City, has said that using school recognition money to pay teachers is a logical extension of Bush's A-plus program, which seeks to reward and punish schools based on student performance on standardized tests.

The House supports the A-Plus plan and appears ready to negotiate the point.

"We're certainly open to discussions and compromise," said Rep. David Simmons, R-Longwood, head of education spending in the House.

"We look forward to a meaningful dialogue with the governor on this issue. We've presented our budget. We're going to be in conference. There will be ample opportunity for compromise."

Senate President Jim King said Wednesday that he's willing to negotiate "as long as the governor is willing to negotiate."

"We believe in his program; we just believe that the money in this program could be better spent in another area," King said.

-- Times staff writers Julie Hauserman and Lucy Morgan contributed to this report.

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