House sets budget debate rule: Undoing school cuts off limits
The House has adopted a rule governing next week’s floor debate of the state budget that frustrates Democrats who want to undo last session’s education cuts, but also some tea party Republicans.
The vote on the so-called calendar rule was 133-11. Among those voting no were nine Democrats, including Reps. Lon Burnam of Fort Worth, Trey Martinez Fischer of San Antonio, Armando Walle of Houston and Abel Herrero of Corpus Christi; and conservative Republicans David Simpson of Longview and Van Taylor of Plano.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, said the two-year, $193.8 billion budget that will be on the floor next week spends all but $685 million of funds subject to a state constitutional spending limit.
Last session, lawmakers cut funding of public schools by $5.3 billion. The House’s emerging budget would undo $2 billion of the cuts, and Pitts has said he’ll recommend immediately giving school districts an additional $500 million in a separate, emergency spending bill to augment the current budget to pay for things such as the 2011 wildfires.
More at http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/2013/03/house-sets-budget-debate-rule-undoing-school-cuts-off-limits.html/ .
