Idaho politics: The $50 million (or so) gap facing public schools | Voices.IdahoStatesman.com
The 2010 legislative session was history-making bad for Idaho public schools.
This isn’t spin, just brutal fact. Any way you want to measure it, the $128.5 million budget cut was unprecedented in magnitude. Not that 2009, and its $68 million cut, was a banner year.
Will these two years of cuts establish the new normal for Idaho schools, and its 275,000 K-12 students?
Could be.
In 2011, the schools will have a lot of work just to keep up.
State schools superintendent Tom Luna ran through the grim numbers when he sat down with the Statesman editorial board this week.
This year’s budget uses about $38 million of one-time money to cover ongoing needs. Things have been worse. A year ago, nearly $200 million in one-time money propped up the wobbly K-12 budget — after legislators set aside their dramatic outrage over the Obama economic stimulus bill long enough to cash Uncle Sam’s checks.
The state is weaning itself off of one-time “found” money, but this is still akin to dipping into the savings account to make the mortgage payment. Not ideal.
Tack on the costs of keeping up with inflation and enrollment growth, and a $38 million hole widens to $50 million to $60 million. That’s what it takes just to tread water.
Don’t forget that this year’s budget is forcing some tough decisions. Boise has zeroed out budgets for new textbooks, library books and supplies. Meridian has cut three school days from the calendar. Nampa will save some transportation dollars by holding some all-day kindergarten sessions (an idea floated and abandoned in Meridian). Not to mention pay cuts and furloughs, or the positions eliminated — all in the name of bringing down the payroll costs that consume most of a district’s budget.
If the 2011 Legislature doesn’t cobble together $50 million or so of new money, the districts will be forced to tack on additional cuts.
There’s a reason why a lot of smart observers say the 2011 session will be even more demanding than 2010. After spending stimulus and reserve dollars to mitigate the budget damage, the state has little margin for error. Shortfalls are looming, particularly in Medicaid. As state Division of Financial Management chief Wayne Hammon said this week, Idaho might need $200 million to $300 million in new revenues just to maintain current levels of services.
So, hope for an economic rebound. And ASAP.
Still, this presents a good question for voters to pose to anyone running for governor or Legislature. Would you insist on 2011-12 budgets that at least hold the line for public schools — or better yet, reverse some cuts? The same question applies to higher education, which has been hit even harder the past couple of years.
Luna says he is hopeful — perhaps because he is at his heart an optimist, but perhaps also because he has the political savvy to give fellow Republicans the benefit of the doubt. He believes the Legislature will eagerly reverse the K-12 cuts. “It was the last dollar they cut, and it’s the first dollar they’re going to want to put back in.”
Of course, schools could use a lot more than that first dollar.
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I hope this pushes us and every state experiencing financial drought to consider more home- and on-line-school options. I think once we start implementing more of those kinds of things we'll find they hold great benefit, especially if we also keep the best of what the current system offers.
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