Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is close to settling a long-running row over health and education funding with his state and territory counterparts.
The federal government slashed $80 billion off those areas in the 2014 budget, in a move that drew the ire of the premiers and chief ministers.
Mr Turnbull has put forward a $7 billion peace offering, in what has been dubbed "hush money" by one state, the ABC reports.
The Australian Education Union seized on the reports to argue Mr Turnbull should match Labor's promise of long-term funding of the Gonski model.
"Schools need long-term certainty over funding, not a quick pre-election fix," president Correna Haythorpe said in a statement.
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Mr Turnbull declined to provide a "running commentary" on the progress of talks.
"We recognise we've got common challenges and always we have to work constructively and cordially together to solve them," he told reporters in Canberra.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews later said he hadn't heard from Mr Turnbull despite federal Treasurer Scott Morrison suggesting on Thursday the PM had been in touch with state and territory leaders.
Mr Andrews said Victoria hadn't been offered any "hush money".
"I woke up this morning and saw reports of this and checked my mobile phone and I didn't have a missed call from Malcolm," the premier told reporters.
"We've had no offer, we've had no approach from the prime minister, he's not rung me."
Mr Andrews insisted hospital cuts hurt patients and education cuts cost students.
