While school districts across the state are waiting to see how much money they’ll receive for education, House and Senate leaders are in a gridlock on which version of the budget to approve.

House and Senate leaders are “hammering out an agreement” on the two-year budget that would allocated $1 billion or more to education.

But State Rep. Jan Angel (R-Port Orchard) said meeting the June 15 depends on Gov. Jay Inslee.

Angel said if Inslee starts bringing forth policy bills that have already died in committee, the Legislature will not get the budget done in 30 days.

“We’d be lucky to get it done in 60 days,” Angel said. “If he pulls policy bills from the past forward, it puts us back into committee. If he works on just budget bills, then we go in and hammer out that budget and we go home.”

Both the House and Senate budget versions would allocate at least $1 billion to fund education.

Angel said the state reported more than $2 billion more revenue than expected for the 2013-15 two-year budget.

“The amounts for education are similar in the House and Senate,” Angel said. “However, the difference in the budgets the Senate is using the extra revenue with the revenue they have. They are doing their budget without raising taxes.”

The House’s version has $1.3 billion for education, but raising taxes.

“The question is where is the extra $2 billion dollars going,” said the 26th District representative.

In the past, Angel said, the governor would bring the House and Senate leaders together and “hammer it out” until there was an   agreement.

“The House would pass it, the Senate would pass it, then we’d all vote on it,” Angel said. “This year, I’m not sure that will happen because the governor has not intervened.”

She said Inslee needs to bring House and Senate leaders together

“Someone has to take the leadership to bring the House and Senate leaders together to see how we’re going to ‘hammer this out,’ ” Angel said.

Angel said the state constitution only mandates that education be funded.

“That we fund it adequately, fully, appropriately for all children,” she said.

She said in 2010, House Bill 2216 was passed and presented a plan that would phase in the funding and how the Legislature would do it.

“The blueprint was laid out there, they didn’t follow up with the funding,” Angel said.

She said in the McCleary decision does say the state “doesn’t have to throw more money at education.”

“What it does say, is that we’ve got to focus first of all on better student outcomes, accountability and close the achievement gap,” Angel said. “If we would have done what we said we would do through HB 2216, we won’t be in this jam.”

Angel said government has been really poor at saying, “what they’re going to do and going through with it.”

“We must fund education first,” Angel said. “Do the budget for education. Take the politics out of it for our children and grandchildren. The go on to the other priorities such as public safety, to follow up with the money you have.”

She said if the Legislature doesn’t get the budget completed by the May 15 deadline, school districts won’t know what amount of funding they’ll receive. Without a state budget, school districts have until June 15 to issue pink slips to employees and finish its budget.

“Often what happened, school districts will issue pink slips, lay people off and then after our budget is completed and done, and they know what their budget is going to be, then they can rehire people,” Angel said. “I’m hoping we have something for them on June 15,”

Angel said the Legislature must focus on keeping good teachers, taking care of support employees and capital facilities.