In an irony that’s sure to anger many taxpayers, South Carolina senators’ inability to agree on what to do about the state’s limited resources may cause them to use even more of those resources, by forcing an extended session to finish work on the budget.

There are four weeks remaining in the legislative session and the Senate has stalled in its budget deliberations. Senators are against the budget the House sent over because it would spend just $1,643 per student, while fully funding the Education Finance Act would require spending $2,202 per student.

Senators had planned to raise the state sales tax by two cents to bring in more money to plug the budget holes. But Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer ruled those plans out of order, and senators are now trying to come to an agreement about how to proceed.

Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston, says it’s possible lawmakers will finish work on the budget before their June 5^th adjournment, but that would leave no time to deal with possible vetoes by the governor. "If the General Assembly wants to handle vetoes, we’ll have to have some extended veto session in June," he said.

Extra legislative days cost taxpayers about $25,000 per day.

Sen. Warren Giese, R-Richland, doesn’t think an extended session will be necessary, but isn’t worried about the cost if it is. "I think when you’re talking about 5-point-something billions of dollars, if you’re talking about the cost of an extra session, it’s infinitesimal. And I think the time invested would certainly be worth, if it were necessary, it would be worth the dealing and getting the budget in good shape," he says.

But Gov. Mark Sanford disagrees. He told News Channel 7, "We are opposed to the idea of wasting any additional taxpayer money on an extended session simply because a handful of legislators are conspiring to slow down the process. We need to move forward with a legitimate debate on the budget – and do it this session. Period." He went on to say, "To think that we would waste even a dime of taxpayers’ money in a budget year like this simply because a handful of folks want to play politics is simply unacceptable."

Senators say the slow pace of the budget work is caused by the budget itself, and they’re not behind because of time they’ve spent on any other bills. News Channel 7 has brought you stories about bills at the Statehouse that many consider frivolous, like regulating the number of women’s toilets in new state buildings and requiring all state constitutional officers to get concealed weapons permits.