Budget Conference: House and Senate Support $1.8B for Road Construction Projects
Negotiators will work through Friday on differences in education, health care and environmental spending before a budget vote planned for the week of May 25.
- On Tuesday, Florida lawmakers convened a special session to resolve a $1.4 billion difference between the House's $113.6 billion budget plan and the Senate's $115 billion proposal.
- House Speaker Daniel Perez and Senate President Ben Albritton failed to reach agreement during the regular session that ended March 13, forcing the overtime session to finalize the only constitutionally required duty.
- Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, attributed the stalemate to personality clashes rather than substantive disagreements, saying "I think those days are gone" and lawmakers would "get a budget done."
- House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell and Senate Democratic Leader Lori Berman, D-Boca Raton, proposed eliminating the 25.3 cent per gallon gas tax, citing surge in gas prices from the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran.
- With the special session scheduled to conclude by May 29, lawmakers planned a vote on the budget for the week of May 25, though Driskell and other House Democrats opposed advancing bills without floor debate.
17 Articles
17 Articles
Budget conference: House and Senate support $1.8B for road construction projects
The House and Senate are agreeing to spend nearly $1.8 billion for the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to accelerate major construction projects across the state. The proposed state money for Moving Florida Forward is a Gov. Ron DeSantis priority and an issue he occasionally highlights during his daily news conferences. Lawmakers returned to Tallahassee this week to finish the budget during the Special Session. The 2026 Regular Sessi…
Tallahassee Reports
News Service of FloridaLawmakers Open Special Session to Resolve Budget Stalemate
By Gray Rohrer and Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida Lawmakers convened a special session Tuesday to resolve a $1.4 billion difference between the preferred spending plans of the House and Senate. The gap between the Senate’s $115 billion budget and the House’s $113.6 billion plan is 1.2 percent of the current budget, but House Speaker Daniel Perez, R-Miami, and Senate President Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, were unable to reach a deal during…
Florida lawmakers return for budget special session with July 1 deadline looming
Florida lawmakers are back in Tallahassee for a second special session, this time to complete the states only constitutionally required job: passing a budget before the new fiscal year begins July 1.The House and Senate gaveled in Tuesday with broad agreement on major spending areas, including health care, education and transportation. But legislative leaders still have a major divide to close: a roughly $1.4 billion gap between the Houses lower…
Florida Phoenix
Money, money, money: FY 26-27 budget special session is here
(Stock photo illustration via Getty Images)With billions on the line for Florida’s schools, the environment, and its neediest citizens, state legislators return to Tallahassee Tuesday to finally craft a new state budget. Republicans who control the Legislature were unable to piece together the state fiscal year 2026-27 budget during their regular session that ended in March. The standoff was largely due to a push by House Speaker Daniel Perez an…
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