But the budget allocation - tacked onto a surplus spending bill by the Cellucci administration and lawmakers in August - has drawn sharp protest from other state tourism agencies.

The $1.5 million came from surplus tourism money funded by a state hotel tax. A portion of the tourism fund money is supposed to be distributed to the regional tourism councils.

"Under Massachusetts general laws (Sail Boston) is not eligible for the funding," said Sheila Martines Pina, chairwoman of the regional tourism council and executive director of the Bristol County Convention and Visitors Bureau. "Were we mad? Absolutely."

Pina said she supports Sail Boston 2000 but charged that lawmakers and the Cellucci administration "raided" the tourism account without any advance notice.

Officials used the surplus money after lawmakers failed to reach agreement on the budget late last summer.

"This was done quietly, privately," Pina said. "It was the right thing to do for (Sail Boston). It came from the wrong source."

The chief organizer of Sail Boston 2000, Dusty Rhodes of Conventures, could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Rhodes and other Sail Boston organizers traveled to England and Italy last week to meet with tall ship captains to convince them to come to Boston.

It was unclear whether any state funding was used for the trip but sources said Rhodes has offered money to tall ships vessels to recruit them to Boston's event.

Sources said Sail Boston organizers also promoted the event at the World Travel Mart convention in London last week.

Boston is locked in a fierce competition with another organization, OpSail, which wants to bring the ships to New London, Conn. Both parades are scheduled the same week next July.

Rhodes claims she has locked up more than 80 tall ships already to come to Boston.

A Cellucci spokesman defended the spending on the tall ships parade, saying it will bring millions in tourism money to the area.

"We support the initiative," said Joseph Landolfi, spokesman for the Office of Administration and Finance. "It's good for Boston, it's good for the economy."

Cellucci last week vetoed $250 million in what he charged was wasteful spending from the $20.8 billion budget.

Among the vetoes was $20 million in salary increases for human service workers and $94 million in education funding. Both of those vetoes were unanimously overridden by lawmakers late last week.

Cellucci claimed he vetoed the money to impose "fiscal discipline" on the free-spending Legislature.

Cellucci, however, has actively supported tourism ventures, and has spent tens of thousands of dollars in taxpayer money on film junkets to Los Angeles and trade missions to Europe.

Mary Jane McKenna, the state's director of Travel and Tourism, said the money is supposed to be spent for "advertising and promotion opportunities for the vessels."

She said she was unaware if Rhodes has offered money to tall ships captains.

"To my knowledge there was nothing in the scope of services for anything like that," McKenna said.