Senate Finance Chairman Dean Cameron, R-Rupert, is opening the debate on SB 1418, the public schools budget. "I never thought that I would stand in front of you this day and suggest that you vote for a budget bill that's actually less than what public schools received this year," Cameron told the Senate. "Unfortunately, that's my job today." He said, "It is not the number that I would prefer. It is certainly not the number that I know most of you would prefer."

The budget bill would gives schools $1.214 billion in state general funds - a 1.4 percent decrease from this year in actual numbers, but effectively an 8.4 percent drop due to the removal of federal stimulus money that previously subbed in for general funds - and $1.58 billion in total funds, an overall 7.5 percent drop. That's an overall decrease of $128.5 million.