By J. Lyn Carl, GalleryWatch.com
Austin, TX –
The game of musical chairs between HB 2 and HB 3 continued today as Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst announced that the Senate is likely to take up HB 3 first - probably on Tuesday.
Plans in the Senate originally were for HB 2, the public school reform bill, to be taken up today. More than 75 amendments to the bill had been pre-filed. However, as the afternoon floor session wore on, rumors flew that there were not enough votes to suspend the rules to bring the bill up for discussion.
After the Senate adjourned late this evening, Dewhurst announced that the confusion on the Senate floor today that led to the scrapping of consideration of HB 2 was related to a set of district-by-district runs released by State Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn.
The lieutenant governor said the run of numbers provided by Strayhorn for school districts in the state differed from those offered by the Legislative Budget Board. Thus, said Dewhurst, it took most of the afternoon to be able to get a clarification on what he called Strayhorn's "attempt to be helpful."
Noting that the comptroller's office "almost never" has been involved in providing school district runs related to state funding, Dewhurst described that function as "a job of the LBB."
The lieutenant governor said the second set of district runs were brought to his attention by Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas), who expressed his concerns over the figures for schools in the Dallas ISD. However, Dewhurst said he now thinks, "We've sorted this out."
The lieutenant governor said the Senate will not take up the school-related bills until all of the members of the Senate who will be attending Rep. Joe Moreno's funeral in Houston Tuesday have returned. Other bills will be taken up when the Senate meets beginning at 11 a.m. Tuesday, he said.
Sen. Florence Shapiro (R-Plano), whose Committee Substitute for HB 2 will be considered this week, said the comptroller's run of figures surfaced at the last minute. She pointed out, however, "We believe the LBB numbers are the correct numbers." She said that in the committee substitute, lawmakers will be looking at hold-harmless provisions based on 2006 figures, while the comptroller's figures were based on 2005 numbers.
She said that as the clock approached 7 p.m. today and the best figures were made available, it was "difficult" to start a bill with 78 amendments that late in the day.
The decision now, said Dewhurst and Shapiro, is that the Senate is likely to hear HB 3 Tuesday and HB 2 later in the week. However, the lieutenant governor said it would depend on "where the majority of the senators are" on the issue.
Shapiro pointed out that the two bills are "inextricably linked to each other," and both have as part of their language that they will not go into effect if the other doesn't pass.
Dewhurst said both HB 2 and HB 3 are balanced. "That was one of our original goals and we have met that goal."