Fresh off a nasty week that saw House Democrats and Republicans openly bicker on the House floor, lawmakers return to the Capitol today for a slog through the last two weeks of the session.

House Democratic Leader Lynn Kessler, whose lawyer-husband was vilified in debate over an insurance bill on Thursday, said she was putting that behind her after Republican Rep. Dan Roach of Bonney Lake apologized.

A sign she isn't just dreaming: Budget writers in the House and Senate both said they are moving well ahead of schedule on a $33 billion spending plan.

House and Senate negotiators were trading budget counterproposals Friday, narrowing their differences in major areas of disagreement around K-12 education and especially how to treat math and science education. Gov. Chris Gregoire had proposed twice as much spending on math and science, teacher training and related efforts as the House and three times what the Senate did.

But Sen. Craig Pridemore, the Vancouver Democrat who is the Senate's No. 1 budget writer, said the Senate and House are moving closer to the governor's requests, as well as toward each other. In the House, the top budget writer, Rep. Helen Sommers, D-Seattle, said much the same.

Republicans said they were on the sidelines with the budget talks as they have been on many legislative issues, since Democrats rule with a 32-17 majority in the Senate and 62-36 in the House.

“Other than the capital budget, it was pretty unpleasant,'' Senate Minority Leader Mike Hewitt, R-Walla Walla, said of the session's give-and-take.

In the House, Republican Leader Richard DeBolt of Chehalis tried to make peace with Democrats after Thursday's blow-up, in which Roach joined an attack on trial lawyers as part of a GOP strategy to counter a bill cracking down on insurers who delay or deny claims.

“Easter being the season of hope and renewal, we'll take a break and come back with hope and renewal” today, DeBolt said in a sit-down with reporters, adding Roach had apologized to Kessler.

Looking ahead, the big hurdles this week is Friday's 5 p.m. deadline for passing bills out of the opposite chamber from where they began. Several controversial bills remain alive in the House and Senate.

At the top of the list in the House is a measure legalizing domestic partnerships in order to give same-sex couples some end-of-life medical rights enjoyed by married couples. The House also has a bill to delay certain math and science graduation requirements for high school students that could be voted on today, said House Education chairman Dave Quall, D-Mount Vernon.

There also are votes to be taken on medically accurate sex education, climate change, paid family leave and banning cell phone use while driving a car. Those likely will not take place until Tuesday, when a House rule takes effect to limit debate by each lawmaker to three minutes.

The Senate has its own thorny problems. The first is bill supporters need to find 33 votes for a constitutional amendment allowing school levies to pass on a 50 percent vote. The House passed the bill easily, and voters would have to ratify it in November.

The two chambers also have to agree on the budgets and major changes to health insurance programs that are meant to expand access, reduce costs and improve quality of care.

And then there is the $500 million Sonics arena, whose legislative backers make a pitch to House Democrats today despite disdain for the proposal by Speaker Frank Chopp, D-Seattle. A bill authorizing a public-facilities district using state money for a Lewis County horse arena also awaits a vote in the Senate.

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