The division in the Florida Legislature over where and how to draw the new boundaries on the state's congressional map has gotten very personal, and instead of extending the mapmaking special session, the state House has decided to go home.

Republican leaders in the Florida House and Senate are failing to see eye-to-eye on just what the new boundaries should look like.

Friday morning, the mapmaking chief in the Senate stormed out of a meeting with his House counterpart.

The issue: There are two different maps — one passed by the House, the other passed by the Senate.

The House argues its map can best survive the scrutiny of the state Supreme Court, which struck down the current map, ruling it was drawn to benefit the Capitol's majority Republicans and violates fair districts amendments.

The Senate said it has what leaders call a "better" map. Neither chamber has been willing to back down, the tension's been ratcheted up, and it all came to a head when the House and Senate mapmaking chairmen met Friday in a last-ditch attempt to reach an on-time compromise.

"This process was done from the start," state Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, said Friday. "Frankly, we were 'dammed if you do, damned if you don't,' and so, I think at this point I'm just going to, Chairman, respectfully, reiterate the Senate's request for conference and leave it at that."

"Certainly, members of the House, I think that that probably speaks a little bit to the nature that this has taken," said state Rep. Jose Oliva, R-Miami Lakes. "I think up until now these meetings were held in a very courteous fashion,  and what you see here is probably what should concern all of you, and certainly anybody out in the public, about the function of their government."

The state Senate had earlier voted to extend the special session through Tuesday. The House, though, has closed up shop, and representatives started heading home.

That means all the mapmaking will now be in the hands of the Florida Supreme Court. The justices could do one of the following:

  • Pick one of the two maps drawn up by the Legislature
  • Appoint a professional independent mapmaker
  • Redraw the boundaries on their own.