A Republican lawmaker cried foul today after his bill on math and science graduation requirements was bumped to the end of a hearing calendar.

The switch means that University of Colorado President Hank Brown won’t be able to testify this afternoon on behalf of Senate Bill 131 as scheduled.

"This is unbelievable," said Rep. Rob Witwer, R-Genesse, the House sponsor.

Rep. Mike Merrifield, chairman of the House Education Committee, said he changed the lineup at the requests of teachers who wanted to be able to testify.

"They have as much valuable testimony to give as Hank Brown, who hasn’t spent his career in the classroom," said Merrifield, D-Colorado Springs.

Merrifield opposes the bill, as do the teachers who plan to testify, he said.

The measure would require public high school students to pass four years of math and three years of science to graduate. Witwer said that is crucial in today’s global economy.

Merrifield said that contradicts a national report that concludes students are best prepared to succeed when they have a well-rounded education in both math and science as well as the arts and social studies.

In addition to Brown, Witwer lined up Larry Penley, the president of Colorado State University, and an executive with Lockheed-Martin to testify for his proposal.

The Education Committee, which begins at 1:30 p.m. today, is scheduled to hear four bills.

Witwer believes the reason the lineup was switched is because lawmakers knew Wednesday that Brown would be unavailable after 3 p.m. By moving his bill last, it knocked Brown out.

"This is a procedural trick and it’s partisanship at its worst," Witwer said.

But Merrifield said that even if Brown weren’t testifying the bill would have been bumped to last to accommodate teachers’ schedules.