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Stimulus Foes Ease Stance

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By BILLY HOUSE

bhouse@tampatrib.com

Published: February 20, 2009

WASHINGTON - None of them voted in support of the $787 billion economic stimulus package.

But on Thursday, nine Republican House members from Florida joined nine Democratic House members from the state in writing to the U.S. education secretary for a waiver so the state can qualify for $2.7 billion from a key funding category of the bill.

The letter was authored by freshman Rep. Suzanne Kosmos, a Democrat from New Smyrna Beach. Other Democrats signing the letter were Ron Klein, Alcee Hastings, Robert Wexler, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Kathy Castor, Kendrick Meek, Alan Grayson and Corrine Brown.

The Republicans signatories are listed as Adam Putnam, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Lincoln Diaz-Balart, Tom Rooney, Mario Diaz-Balart, Ginny Brown-Waite, Cliff Stearns, John Mica and Bill Posey.

Florida's two senators, Democrat Bill Nelson and Republican Mel Martinez, sent a similar joint letter last week.

Florida does not technically meet the requirements to receive a share of a $54.4 billion pot of money from the $787 billion stimulus package signed into law by Obama this week to help cash-strapped states balance their budgets, mostly through added funding for education needs.

That's because a state, to get the money, must be funding K-12 and higher education at no less than 2006 levels. States that are not forfeit their share of the so-called State Fiscal Stabilization Fund.

Florida falls $600 million short on that count because it has 30,000 fewer students than in 2006, the biggest drop in public enrollment in the state's history.

In the letter to Secretary Arne Duncan today from the Florida House members, Duncan is asked to help the state.

The economic stimulus package gives Duncan the authority to waive the requirement in cases of hardship. That's how the lawmakers' letter defines Florida's situation.

"This critical funding is vital to protecting our schools from budget cuts and teacher layoffs," the letter states.

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