I've been bombarded by e-mails this afternoon by advocacy groups outraged that many of the cuts in the Senate's version of an economic stimulus bill involve education and other spending for children. And, according to my colleagues, the Senate package would direct $953 million less to Maryland (for all things, not just education) than the House's version. It does not include $450 million in discretionary money for the state. Education advocates have been hoping that Gov. O'Malley would use that discretionary pot to prevent the changes in funding formulas that would hurt Baltimore and Prince George's County schools so badly. The remaining stimulus money for schools is earmarked for things such as Title 1 and special education, so it wouldn't close a budget shortfall when a school district needs money to pay teachers.

The National Head Start Association points out that the Senate included just over $1 billion for Head Start; the House version has $2.1 billion.

The House version contains $14 billion for school modernization; the Senate version does not.

A joint committee will now hammer out the differences between the two.