THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 16, 1994 TAG: 9407160265
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY BETTY MITCHELL GRAY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RALEIGH LENGTH: Medium: 74 lines
House and Senate budget negotiators continued to struggle Friday with differences in their budgets as they inched closer toward adjournment.
``It's only just a little bit that separates us now,'' Senate leader Marc Basnight told his colleagues Friday afternoon. ``But that little bit sometimes takes a long time.''
Budget negotiators had, however, agreed tentatively to some budget proposals that include about $13.3million in spending for northeastern North Carolina projects.
Legislators also stepped up debate on a bill that would allow the Department of Transportation to build the first state-owned toll bridge.
The House passed the bill 93-77 after it cleared its final committee hurdle earlier in the day.
Separate versions of the toll bridge bill must be reconciled before it can become law. The Senate bill establishes a bridge authority to oversee construction of the span and to levy tolls. The House version gives that authority to the Department of Transportation.
Basnight is reportedly considering other changes in the measure that would exempt some Albemarle-area residents from the toll.
On the budget negotiations, the Senate has approved a $1 billion spending plan for this year while the House proposed a $1.2 billion spending proposal.
The House and Senate had reached tentative agreement over much of the public education spending items after the House agreed to Senate demands on supplements for the state's smaller and poorer school systems and the Senate agreed to fund most of the House requests for money for the Basic Education Plan.
Under the tentative agreement, the state's poor school systems will receive $7 million - of which schools in the northeast will receive about $950,000. The state's small school systems will receive $3 million with about $940,000 going to school systems in the northeast.
Basnight said he was pleased by the agreement.
``Our school position is very good,'' he said Friday morning. ``This was one of my priorities.''
Still up for debate among House and Senate leaders Friday afternoon was the capital budget that will fund state construction projects for the coming year.
Also under discussion was a Senate proposal to spend $75,000 for a committee to plan a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers' flight at Kill Devil Hills.
One proposal reportedly under debate would give construction projects half the money that was originally requested. Projects that had federal or local matching funds would be funded for the full amount under the compromise offered Friday. MEMO: SELECTED BUDGET ITEMS
Here's a look at some of the budget items affecting the Albemarle
area that have been reconciled by House and Senate budget negotiations:
Supplemental funding for the small school systems $3 million
Supplemental funding for poorer school systems $7 million
Funding to develop basinwide management plans for the state's river
basins and estuaries $500,000
Funding for the Division of Marine Fisheries to develop plans to
comply with Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Plans $722,431
Funding for a grant program for the Division of Marine Fisheries, an
oyster blue-ribbon commission and an office in Tyrrell County $1.53
million
Funding for the partnership for the Sounds $367,250
Roanoke Island Commission $15,000
Agriculture research funding for small horticultural crops and soil
science faculty $200,000 by CNB