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a newsletter of rural school and community action  Roundup! What Went On in State Legislatures This Year Rural Policy Matters (RPM) has been investigating leading rural states to find out what happened to rural education in state legislatures this year. Here's what we rounded up. Reports are by RPM personnel, but many are based on reports from sources in the state. Where sources are listed, it is for the use of our readers. The sources are not responsible for any errors in these reports. Some states we are following have long legislative sessions or special sessions pending and will be corralled in the coming months. Alaska The Alaska Legislature moved per pupil grant money into the foundation formula and claims it is a funding increase (much smaller than inflation). It cut $32 million in municipal assistance, which will force many cities and boroughs to shift money from schools to municipalities. It also eliminated support for early childhood education to the neediest students. There is talk of more consolidation next year in a state that has only 53 districts, many bigger than in most states. The state claims a budget gap of $400 million but has over $35 billion in oil, coal and gas reserves. Nonetheless, the state has imposed fees and taxes on the poorest, reduced support for the elderly, and given tax breaks or protection to offshore or foreign-owned energy and cruise industries. Meanwhile, more than half the poor and minority students failed the exit exams and teacher turnover for those children is more than 50% each year in many districts. Source: Spike Jorgensen, Citizens for the Educational Advancement of Alaska's Children. Illinois In a year when Illinois is facing a $5 billion budget deficit, the General Assembly finalized a 2004 fiscal year education budget totaling $6.56 billion in general funds. This is an increase of $330 million over the 2003 fiscal year budget. The increase included $250 million for state aid to local schools, increasing per pupil aid from $4,560 to $4,810. Three categorical aid programs also received increased funding: early childhood education, bilingual education, and Regional Office of Education with salaries. But to make these increases possible, eight program budgets were reduced and 12 programs totaling $44 million were eliminated. The budget included a 30% decrease in the Illinois State Board of Education's Budget ($25 million to $16.5 million). Layoffs at the state level are pending. All of this is subject to Governor Rod Blagojevich's line item veto. The legislature also sent the governor a measure revising the state's testing and accountability program to bring it into alignment with requirements of the "No Child Left Behind" legislation. Source: Bob Rogers, Association of Illinois Rural and Small Schools. Kansas Kansas school districts were held harmless from budget cuts during this legislative session. All districts will receive their general and supplemental state aid payments in July, a month late. The governor was given authority to accelerate collection of 2004 property taxes (May 10 instead of June 20) and to issue tax refunds late. Local school boards were given expanded authority to transact business and operate public schools independently, unless specifically contrary to existing state law. Small schools are playing strong defense on consolidation, keeping five consolidation bills stalled in the House Education Committee. However, the State Board of Education, a Governor's Task Force on Education, and a Legislative Interim Committee are all studying consolidation this summer and fall. Governor Kathleen Sebelius has also proposed a task force on the school funding formula. Source: Jacque Oakes, Schools for Quality Education. Montana The 58th Montana Legislative Session lived up to expectations as difficult and contentious for schools. Despite a united K-12 education community, schools did not receive the funds needed to address the declining enrollments affecting most of the state's districts. But legislative leaders, the Montana Rural Education Association and the Montana School Boards Association comprised to increase state aid by $20.8 million over the next two years with a potential additional increase of $7.7 million pending voter approval. A detailed summary of school funding changes included in SB 424 and HB 2 is available online. Three bills aimed at school consolidation were defeated but one establishing a K-12 Public School Renewal Commission (HB 736) passed in the final days. This commission will study a wide range of issues, including "the structure of school district governance," which is code talk for school consolidation. Source: Dave Puyear, Montana Rural Education Association of Schools. Minnesota Minnesota schools have been stuggling since former Governor Jesse Ventura took over their funding but didn't find a way to pay for it. His move, plus the economic recession, created the biggest budget deficit Minnesota has ever seen. Current Governor Tim Pawlenty made a campaign pledge to eliminate the deficit with "no new taxes." What he used instead were accounting shifts, new fees, and higher local property taxes. K-12 funding cuts were held to 2%. In this eroding fiscal condition, the Minnesota Rural Education Association achieved a long-term goal -- greater fairness in excess levies. The victory is bittersweet because all school districts will be forced to increase local levies or cut their funding further. Missouri Faced with declining state revenues for the third year in a row and the first Republican-held majority in both Houses in 50 years, the Missouri Legislature was forced into special session on June 1 after Governor Bob Holden vetoed as inadequate two-thirds of the $19 billion budget, including the funding for elementary and secondary education. The bill would have cut $189 million from the budget for the School Foundation Formula, compared the 2003 appropriation level. Serious funding inequities are evident between rural districts that depend heavily on the foundation formula and many suburban districts that receive the majority of their funding from local property taxes. A lawsuit is likely in the coming months. Nebraska With Nebraska facing a large budget shortfall, Governor Mike Johanns proposed that K-12 education be cut from $661.8 million this year to $582 million next year. According to an "auto pilot" provision in the 2002/2003 formula, schools were supposed to get $722.5 million next year. The unicameral legislature (Nebraska is the only state with a single-house legislature) advanced a bill calling for K-12 education funding in the amount of $640.7 million general fund aid, with no cuts in Special Education funding and added a provision limiting school budgets to zero growth unless a super-majority of local voters approved exceeding that growth factor by up to 1%. To help offset the loss of state funding, the measure also permitted districts to levy up to $1.05 per $100 property valuation, up from the $1.00 levy limit now in place. Governor Johanns vetoed the legislation, but the senators overrode the veto by a vote of 44-4. Source: Milford Smith, Nebraska Coalition for Educational Equity and Adequacy. New Mexico Among the major education measures passed by the 2003 New Mexico Legislature was a measure limiting local school boards to setting policies and hiring the superintendent. They no longer hire other school personnel. Implementation promises to be difficult. Small, rural schools have been particularly susceptible to local politics within school boards. Also, an appropriation increase of $79.7 million (4.4% over the 2003 fiscal year) was passed, including new funding to provide a statewide, minimum teachers' salary of $30,000. A three-tiered professional licensure structure has been established requiring teachers to demonstrate competency prior to moving to the next tier. A 6% salary increase for teachers and other instructional staff was mandated beginning in December 2003. This is creating much hardship for schools as they prepare their next years' budgets. And the Assessment and Accountability Act was passed to comply with the federal No Child Left Behind Act. An Indian Education Act also passed providing initial funding to improve and make culturally relevant the educational opportunities of Native Americans. New York Governor George Pataki and the legislature could not agree on a budget and for the nineteenth consecutive time, the state began its fiscal year without one. A deficit of more than $11 billion could not be ignored, however, and in the budget cutting, the legislature slashed $1.24 billion from education. Cuts were deepest for the schools that could least afford them, the overwhelming majority of them rural. With their state aid reduced but state spending mandates intact, these districts prepared budgets that required large local tax increases, many well into the double digits. Rural schools launched an information campaign with a color-coded map that graphically displayed the relationship between poor districts and state aid cuts. For the first time in memory, the education community united, and 35,000 public school advocates demonstrated on the capitol lawn. The legislature responded by restoring many of the cuts, raising revenue by increasing taxes on incomes over $100,000 and adding a quarter of a cent to the sales tax. The Governor vetoed the measure, was overridden by the legislature, and is considering litigation. Source: Michael Joseph, Jr., Rural Schools Program. North Dakota Governor John Hoeven called a reluctant legislature back into session to reconsider vetoed legislation barely a week after it had adjourned. The Governor particularly wanted a guarantee that teachers would receive a minimum of 70% of new foundation aid money coming to school districts. The language developed in the special session allows districts to opt out, however, so little was accomplished. Earlier in the session legislators had attempted to establish an investigative committee, with subpoena powers, to oversee Department of Public Instruction implementation of the federal No Child Left Behind law. Following a threat State Superintendent Wayne G. Sanstead to file a lawsuit claiming the measure would violate the constitutional separation of powers between the branches of government, the legislature removed the offending language and passed a bill requiring DPI to report to a legislative committee. Overall there was little progress in improved funding for rural schools. Foundation aid was exempted from reductions in the state budget, and in fact was increased slightly, but it will not help most rural schools because of declining enrollment. Source: Patricia A. Laubach at plaubach@state.nd.us. Oregon Oregon's economic woes continue as schools shut down early and staff contracts are reduced. The state's heavy reliance on the income tax hurts with the downturn in the economy. The legislature has completed its sixth special session on the rebalancing of the budget for the 2001-2003 biennium, and has done little to address plummeting revenue projections for 2003-2005. Another source of revenue is needed to fund education and other essential services in Oregon. To raise revenue, the legislature modified the Public Employees Retirement System, but changes will certainly be challenged in court by many employee unions and/or public employers. And after many forced school consolidations, another interim committee is charged with looking at school district organization. Bucking the trend, they allowed one district to break away from a larger countywide school district and create another small school district. Source: George D. Lanning at ossa@open.org. South Carolina he South Carolina Legislature reduced K-12 spending by $426.00 per student to $1,777 per student for the 2003-2004 year, the lowest level since 1997. Even this meager level of funding depends on South Carolina receiving $44.6 million in the proposed one-time federal supplement to states that is part of the proposed federal tax cut plan. If that does not materialize or if it is diverted to make up for declining state revenue (down $68 million during the month of May alone) spending per student could fall further, to $1,701. Already, districts have cut staff, canceled summer school, after-school, and athletic programs, and raised property taxes. Remarkably, school districts operated during the past year on as little as $1,643 per student after several mid-year budget cuts, prompting some legislators to declare the $1777 spending level a victory for education. Because state aid to schools is the only part of school revenue that is adjusted for districts' relative wealth and poverty, the neediest rural districts will again be hit the hardest. Sources: John Robinson, South Carolina Rural Education Association and Amanda Gibson Adler, South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center. Utah Utah -- In the 2000 legislative session, Utah public education was cut by millions and it was a top priority in 2003 to have these funds restored. The funds were not restored. However, the legislature did fund increases for retirement, growth, charter schools, and teacher supplies. Also, $1.8 million of one-time money was appropriated to implement an omnibus education reform bill. Foundation formula funding was increased from $2,132 to $2,150 per pupil unit (0 .84%) to cover estimated increases in insurance costs. Overall, state funding for education increased by 1.2 %, but the following programs were reduced: the Quality Teaching Block Grant, Adult Education, the Experimental Developmental Program, and the Capital Outlay Program. There was a strong push for tuition tax credits, and this movement will return another year. Source: Glen Taylor, Central Utah Educational Services, Richfield. Vermont The Vermont Legislature passed a major revision to the Equal Educational Opportunity Act (Act 60). Despite attempts on the part of legislators and interest groups from property wealthy towns to undermine equity and restore the privileges they had before Act 60, the new legislation reaffirms equity and stabilizes the statewide property tax that now serves as a major source of revenue for schools. Grass roots efforts and sustained support for equity helped make it impossible to roll back the benefits of equal educational opportunity to most Vermonters. In addition, the fact that the funding formula gives all districts the same stake in the state's commitment to funding education prevented cuts in state aid, even in a difficult budget year. The legislature also established an oversight committee to monitor costs and implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act. And a tart resolution titled "Expressing Vermont's Strong Disagreement with the Overly Prescriptive Policies and Underfunded Mandates Contained in the Federal No Child Left Behind Act" passed. West Virginia The West Virginia Legislature cut the K-12 technology budget by half -- from $18 million to $9 million. This moves the state backward as communities push for technology use as part of the alternative to busing students long distances to large consolidated schools. The only bill passed this legislative session with real impact is SB 522, which allows the State Board of Education President to serve consecutive terms (the last one went to jail for embezzlement) and requires an annual public evaluation of the state superintendent by the State Board of Education. It also allows counties to lengthen the school day after March 1 if needed to make up for time lost because of weather and eliminates a requirement that a minimum percentage of students be in attendance before a day counts toward the required days of instruction. This change hurts rural students by allowing schools to count full days of instruction even though floods and bad weather prevent rural students from being bused to schools. Source: Linda Martin, Challenge West Virginia. Events | Services | Newsroom | Contact Us | Search © 2003 The Rural School and Community Trust 
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