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PHOENIX — House Speaker Jim Weiers has obligated the state to pay a noted Washington attorney $910 an hour even though he has yet to get approval for that from the state.

Barrett Marson, Weiers' press aide, acknowledged Tuesday that the speaker told Ken Starr the state would pay the fee to persuade the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn lower court rulings obligating Arizona to spend more money to help students learn English.

But the Department of Administration, which is responsible for paying the court costs when the state is embroiled in litigation, has not agreed to pay anyone that much. Agency Director Bill Bell said that, at this point, the maximum fee acceptable is $335 an hour.

Marson said Weiers believes the $575-an-hour difference is justified to get an attorney of Starr's experience, including his background arguing cases before the nation's highest court. Marson said he believes that can be shown to the Department of Administration.

But Bell said Weiers has yet to provide such justification.

In the meantime, though, Starr has prepared a 47-page brief urging the Supreme Court to tell lower-court judges, in essence, to butt out of how the Legislature funds its education programs.

Marson would not say exactly how Weiers intends to pay Starr if the Department of Administration balks at the fee.

"We'll deal with it after that," he said.

Marson also sidestepped the question of whether Weiers would pay the difference out of close to $9 million he has tucked away in leftover funds from prior years. "It's too early to tell," Marson said.

But Starr's petition is not the only one. Attorney Eric Bistrow, who represents state school superintendent Tom Horne, also has asked the Supreme Court to block lower- court judges from interfering anymore in how the state funds its English instruction programs. Bistrow said he is being paid $210 an hour by the state.

Starr is perhaps best known for heading the congressional investigation that led to the U.S. House voting to impeach President Clinton. The Senate voted not to convict.

The Supreme Court fight is over the Equal Education Opportunity Act, which requires states to "take appropriate action to overcome language barriers that impede equal participation by its students in its instructional programs."

A federal judge first ruled in 2000 the extra funding Arizona provided for "English-language learners" was inadequate, a decision since affirmed by another judge even after lawmakers came up with some additional cash.

In the face of ongoing litigation, the state has since modified both the program's terms and the amount spent, but not enough to be fully acceptable to the court and the plaintiffs who are seeking additional funding, which has resulted in the appeal to the Supreme Court.

Attorney Tim Hogan, who represents parents who first sued in 1992, said the record shows the programs now being funded by the state are still not ensuring students who come to school speaking something other than English are learning the language.