House Republican leaders on Thursday held a news conference to explain their budget proposal, which holds the line on taxes and reduces school funding. From left to right are state Rep. Kevin Yoder, R-Overland, House Speaker Mike O'Neal, R-Hutchinson, and House Majority Leader Ray Merrick, R-Stilwell. O'Neal said the full House will consider the proposal next week. The news conference was in O'Neal's office.

Topeka ? A Kansas Senate panel failed to agree Thursday on a variety of tax increase proposals to close a projected gap in the 2011 budget.

Senate leaders say the stalemate makes it unlikely that legislators will be able to finish a base state budget by their planned recess later this month. Lawmakers are scheduled to leave Topeka on April 6 for three weeks.

“I hope that’s not the case,” said Senate Majority Leader Derek Schmidt, an Independence Republican and vice chairman of the tax committee.

That panel met and adjourned Thursday after failing to muster enough votes to endorse a variety of tax increase ideas, with suggestions ranging from a levy on sugary beverages to sales taxes. The tax revenue is critical to close a $364 million hole in a proposed budget the Senate will consider next week.

Earlier, the House Appropriations Committee endorsed a budget drafted by GOP leadership that cuts state spending and puts $302 million into reserves.

The plan would close the projected budget shortfall by not replacing federal stimulus dollars for education and borrowing $50 million from the state highway fund. School districts could replace the lost revenue by raising local taxes, subject to voter approval.

House Speaker Mike O’Neal said the Appropriations Committee was able to deliver on House GOP leaders’ promise to produce a budget without “draconian” cuts or tax increases.

“In talking to our caucus, the vast majority — virtually all of them — are looking for a budget that they can support that does not include tax increases,” said O’Neal, a Hutchinson Republican. “This is it.”

The GOP plan also calls for cutting all other state agency budgets by 1 percent, eliminating all overtime unless authorized and closing all state offices at 3 p.m. on Fridays.

Appropriations Chairman Kevin Yoder said the plan reflected action Tuesday when the House voted to delay any debate on raising taxes, leaving little else to do but to assemble a budget with spending cuts.

“The instructions were clear. The majority of legislators determined that they didn’t want a budget that relied on higher taxes,” said Yoder, an Overland Park Republican.

The plan recommends that the state doesn’t replace $172 million in federal stimulus funds that were used in the current budget to fund K-12 education.

It also is built on the presumption that the Legislature will adopt a change in the school finance formula to require districts to raise a minimum of 10 percent of the base cost of an education with local taxes. The remaining 90 percent would be funded by the state.

Democrats said public schools bear the brunt of the GOP cuts, which they said would hurt all students.

“If you don’t believe education is important, you can do that,” said Rep. Bill Feuerborn of Garnett, the ranking minority member of the committee. “I think we’ll lose federal dollars.”

Feuerborn also complained about the House budget process, which was similar to last year when GOP leaders used their majority on the committee to push through cuts with no discussion about specifics. That resulted in the House defeating the GOP plan and adopting the Senate version in its entirety.

“I would hope we would have the votes to defeat this,” Feuerborn said, adding that merely accepting the Senate plan without House input isn’t the best policy choice either.

Parkinson and Senate Republican leaders had been counting on a tax package to move the state closer to solvency. The governor’s spokesman said Parkinson’s position on protecting schools and vulnerable residents from further cuts hadn’t changed.

“House Republican leadership should turn their attention toward working our way out of this recession by determining what revenue options are available for protecting these critical assets,” spokesman Seth Bundy said.