EDUCATION: GOLD MINE OR SHAFT?
posted by Michael Chihak
Gov. Jan Brewer often refers to herself as "the education governor," pointing out that her original involvement in politics lo many years ago was on a school board.
She has pushed educational issues, including in 2010 the 1-cent education sales tax designed to build a dedicated funding source for education at all levels, K-12, community colleges and universities.
Despite it, she couldn't stave off a Legislature intent on slashing education spending last year, sitting by almost helplessly as $400 million was severed from public education at all levels. Her redoubt was that she had "protected education to the best of my ability," including "risking my career for the 1-cent sales tax.
So along comes 2012 and for the first time in her three-year tenure as governor, the prospect of a state budget surplus. Brewer set about to assign a good bit of the surplus to restore a big chunk of he education cuts. Specifically, she sought just shy of $300 million to be added to education spending.
The Legislature balked at that and at any added spending, saying the state needed to build up its rainy day fund to stave off future fiscal catastrophe.
The compromise gives education $120 million or so in funding added to last year's paltry appropriations.
One-third of it -- $40 million, which is $10 million less than Brewer wanted -- will go to establish reading programs so that children in kindergarten through third grade can get extra help if needed to earn to read. That's a necessity given that the state next year implements a requirement that children must learn to read by third grade or not get promoted.
The real short shrift comes in school building renewal. Brewer sought $100 million spread over three years to make repairs on school facilities that are in some cases literally coming apart at the seams. She's getting $12 million for the next year and no promise of anything in subsequent years.
On Friday's Arizona Week, we will look at the whys and hows of education funding by talking to legislators, and we will find out what the effects of the continued low level of funding are by talking to educators and public education advocates.
