Good work on school funding fix
Given recent history, hopes weren’t high for the Legislature’s special session. Would lawmakers load up a school funding bill with petty and punitive amendments? Would they dither for days, waiting until the last possible moment to reach consensus? Would they defy the Kansas Supreme Court?
To their credit, lawmakers moved quickly to approve a bill that should pass constitutional muster and prevent a school shutdown on July 1.
Good work.
The Supreme Court ruled that school funding was unconstitutional because of inequities between wealthy and poorer school districts. The new funding plan approved Friday follows the state’s previous equalization formula, which required $38 million in additional funding.
The Wichita school district will receive nearly $10.3 million of that funding, a little more than half of which will go toward property tax reduction. Though the increase doesn’t make up for the funding the district has been shorted the past two school years and the extra taxes Wichitans have had to pay, the additional funding is much appreciated and will help the district meet its rising costs.
Initially, the bill would have cut general state aid to all districts by 0.5 percent. But enough lawmakers objected that the cut was removed. Now, lawmakers hope that proceeds from the sale of assets of the Kansas Bioscience Authority can cover that portion of the funding.
The plan also cuts $2.8 million in funding for virtual schools and $7.3 million from a fund created to help districts pay for unexpected and extraordinary needs. It sweeps $4.1 million in welfare funds and takes $10.5 million from the state’s tobacco settlement money.
The financing scheme is not ideal and would not have been necessary if the state had an adequate ending balance. But tax cuts championed by Gov. Sam Brownback have drained the state’s cash reserves.
In fact, the state doesn’t have enough money to make it through the end of this month. It is having to raid more highway funds and may delay its June payment to school districts. Last week Brownback and legislative leaders authorized a record $900 million in internal borrowing so the state can meet its cash-flow demands.
Given the dire financial straits – and the Legislature’s unwillingness to reverse the tax cuts – the piecemeal funding plan likely was the best of the bad options.
Though the funding bill passed overwhelmingly, there was some griping and grumbling by lawmakers. The Senate also attempted to pass a constitutional amendment to block the court’s authority to close schools.
Still, all in all, the special session was remarkably professional and responsive. What a pleasant surprise.
This story was originally published June 26, 2016 at 12:07 AM with the headline "Good work on school funding fix."