Senate adopts $117.4 billion budget; moves bill to conference with House

The Florida Senate passed its version of the General Appropriations Act on Monday, approving a $117.4 billion spending plan for fiscal year 2025–26 and sending it to the House for conference.

Appropriations Chair Ben Hooper presented Senate Bill 2,500 as the chamber’s general appropriations act. Hooper described the package as “fiscally responsible,” noting it reduces overall spending compared with last year’s totals while maintaining robust reserves. He said the budget preserves employee health-care contribution levels and targets investments in water-quality improvements, transportation infrastructure and education capital outlay.

Highlights included: - Total Senate budget: about $117,400,000,000. - Education capital outlay: nearly $1.0 billion, including funding for colleges, universities and public-school construction projects in smaller districts. - A 4% across-the-board pay raise for state employees and targeted increases for state law enforcement and firefighters were included in the proposal. - Key investments in the Senate bill included $750 million for Everglades restoration (funding ultimately moved into the GAA), water-quality grants, workforce training funds, and a host of health, human services and justice appropriations detailed by committee chairs in floor presentations.

Committee chairs strongly defended portions of their silos. Among notable committee presentations: Senator Burgess (PreK–12) outlined a $34.7 billion education total with nearly $29.6 billion for public schools and K–12 scholarships and separated the Family Empowerment Scholarship into its own categorical line ($4.0 billion). Senator Trumbull (Health and Human Services) described $1.8 billion in increases to HHS base budget including Medicaid and targeted mental-health and substance-use investments. Senator DeSigli (Transportation, Tourism and Economic Development) highlighted $15 billion for the transportation program and funding for Visit Florida and affordable housing. Senator Grover (Agriculture, Environment and General Government) outlined historic Everglades funding and significant water-quality investments.

Senators asked detailed questions during floor debate about courthouse judgeships and the distribution of prosecutor salary increases, scholarship accounting and school funding mechanics. Chair Burgess and others described moving scholarship funding “below the line” to better track where scholarship dollars go and to allow the education stabilization fund to smooth enrollment and funding fluctuations caused by universal school choice.

Chair Hooper said the Senate budget would be forwarded to conference with the House; the chamber adopted motions to certify the bills immediately to the House. Several implementing and conforming bills (e.g., bills to implement the appropriations and staffing changes) were also passed and certified.

Ending: The Senate approved its budget and associated implementing bills and instructed staff to move the package to the House for conference. Negotiations and technical work in conference committee were expected to continue through the remainder of session.