October 26, 2001
Source: Representative Tom Feeney, Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives

House Speaker Tom Feeney (R-Oviedo) held a press conference at Noon today to address the current status of the special session and its budget considerations.

The Senate sent their proposed budget down to the House on Thursday of this week. Surprising all, the House turned and considered the Senate’s budget, as opposed to the normal routine of finishing its own budget and sending it down to the Senate. Typically, once the chambers exchange budgets a conference committee of select members of both bodies are then selected and meet to hash out the differences between the budgets.

Speaker Feeney stated that the House will take up and pass the Senate’ s budget on Tuesday. However, it is unlikely that the House will adopt the necessary Senate implementing bills that actually execute the spending for the budget. In other words, a somewhat broken budget will be adopted, necessitating the legislature to meet yet again to resolve outstanding issues between the two bodies. The balancing of the state’s budget remains unresolved.