Some Criticize Education Budget Process
Salt Lake Tribune
by Lisa Schencker
February 15, 2012
The Legislature’s education budget committee recommended Wednesday night that schools get an additional $146 million next school year to pay for new students, boost per pupil spending and fund new types of tests and more computers, among other items.
The committee also recommended, however, that some language be included in the final education budget bill that would cost school districts millions in other areas.
The recommendations passed after hours of debate by lawmakers who, in some cases, were seeing them for the first time because they weren’t put before the committee or the public for serious discussion in the weeks of meetings leading up to the Wednesday night votes.
Freshman Sen. Aaron Osmond, R-South Jordan, said the process took him "aback."
"Many of the items were philosophical items that really deserved much more conversation," Osmond told fellow committee members. "Frankly, it was very uncomfortable. ... It seems like an enormous waste of time for both floors to debate these issues when we should have solved these issues in committee."
State Superintendent Larry Shumway expressed similar sentiments at about 9 p.m. Wednesday after the four-hour meeting ended.
"I’m disturbed at the number of items that show up as intent language that appear they should have legitimately been presented to the Legislature as bills and gone through the process of having public input and the scrutiny that the bill process rightly subjects significant changes to," Shumway said.
The committee recommended, for example, gradually shifting part of the cost of charter schools onto school districts — a move that divided the committee and is sure to cause more debate in coming weeks.
Lawmakers have tried to pass similar measures in recent years with limited success.
Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, said charter school students are now being double-funded because the state pays for them to attend charters but doesn’t take money from districts when those students leave for charters. He said the change would help rectify that, though it could eventually cost districts nearly $80 million a year.
But Rep. Marie Poulson, D-Cottonwood Heights, said the change would likely force school districts to raise taxes to make up for losing that money. "I think that’s a huge burden on our school districts," Poulson said.
The committee also recommended staying the course on a change made to law last year regarding school funding for career and technical education students. Last year, lawmakers decided that districts that send students to Utah College of Applied Technology campuses (ATCs) for part of the school day shouldn’t continue to get the full amount of funding for those students because they’re not in district schools all day. That change means about $5 million less for districts.
Over the past year, rural districts have argued that without that money, they may have to make cuts in other areas, and they might find it difficult to keep sending kids to ATCs.
A number of lawmakers spoke in favor of restoring that money to the schools on Wednesday. Rep. Francis Gibson, R-Mapleton, said schools receive full funding for students who aren’t in the building all day in many cases, such as when they go to seminary. He said if lawmakers are going to discontinue funding schools for students who leave to go to ATCs, then they have to consider applying that consistently.
Others, however, spoke against continuing to fund those ATC students.
"We should not be paying a school for a student who is not there," said Sen. Daniel Thatcher, R-West Valley City. The committee did vote, however, to recommend softening the loss with some additional funding for the next several years.
The ATC and charter school funding changes were just two of more than 10 statutory issues committee members were asked to vote on Wednesday night.
The committee’s recommendations now go to the Executive Appropriations Committee. The final education budget must then be approved by both houses of the Legislature to pass.
Other budget recommendations made by the committee Wednesday included $36 million to fund enrollment growth and $21 million to increase base per pupil spending by 1 percent, though some lawmakers worried that increase would be swallowed up by nearly $25 million in expected retirement cost increases.
The committee did not recommend restoring $8 million for at-risk student programs, which is one of the state school board’s budget priorities for this session. It did, however, recommend some of the board’s other priorities such as paying for new computer adaptive tests; college preparations tests; and funding for more technology.
The Legislature’s education budget committee recommended Wednesday night that schools get an additional $146 million next school year to pay for new students, boost per pupil spending and fund new types of tests and more computers, among other items.
The committee also recommended, however, that some language be included in the final education budget bill that would cost school districts millions in other areas.
The recommendations passed after hours of debate by lawmakers who, in some cases, were seeing them for the first time because they weren’t put before the committee or the public for serious discussion in the weeks of meetings leading up to the Wednesday night votes.
Freshman Sen. Aaron Osmond, R-South Jordan, said the process took him "aback."
"Many of the items were philosophical items that really deserved much more conversation," Osmond told fellow committee members. "Frankly, it was very uncomfortable. ... It seems like an enormous waste of time for both floors to debate these issues when we should have solved these issues in committee."
State Superintendent Larry Shumway expressed similar sentiments at about 9 p.m. Wednesday after the four-hour meeting ended.
"I’m disturbed at the number of items that show up as intent language that appear they should have legitimately been presented to the Legislature as bills and gone through the process of having public input and the scrutiny that the bill process rightly subjects significant changes to," Shumway said.
The committee recommended, for example, gradually shifting part of the cost of charter schools onto school districts — a move that divided the committee and is sure to cause more debate in coming weeks.
Lawmakers have tried to pass similar measures in recent years with limited success.
Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, said charter school students are now being double-funded because the state pays for them to attend charters but doesn’t take money from districts when those students leave for charters. He said the change would help rectify that, though it could eventually cost districts nearly $80 million a year.
But Rep. Marie Poulson, D-Cottonwood Heights, said the change would likely force school districts to raise taxes to make up for losing that money. "I think that’s a huge burden on our school districts," Poulson said.
The committee also recommended staying the course on a change made to law last year regarding school funding for career and technical education students. Last year, lawmakers decided that districts that send students to Utah College of Applied Technology campuses (ATCs) for part of the school day shouldn’t continue to get the full amount of funding for those students because they’re not in district schools all day. That change means about $5 million less for districts.
Over the past year, rural districts have argued that without that money, they may have to make cuts in other areas, and they might find it difficult to keep sending kids to ATCs.
A number of lawmakers spoke in favor of restoring that money to the schools on Wednesday. Rep. Francis Gibson, R-Mapleton, said schools receive full funding for students who aren’t in the building all day in many cases, such as when they go to seminary. He said if lawmakers are going to discontinue funding schools for students who leave to go to ATCs, then they have to consider applying that consistently.
Others, however, spoke against continuing to fund those ATC students.
"We should not be paying a school for a student who is not there," said Sen. Daniel Thatcher, R-West Valley City. The committee did vote, however, to recommend softening the loss with some additional funding for the next several years.
The ATC and charter school funding changes were just two of more than 10 statutory issues committee members were asked to vote on Wednesday night.
The committee’s recommendations now go to the Executive Appropriations Committee. The final education budget must then be approved by both houses of the Legislature to pass.
Other budget recommendations made by the committee Wednesday included $36 million to fund enrollment growth and $21 million to increase base per pupil spending by 1 percent, though some lawmakers worried that increase would be swallowed up by nearly $25 million in expected retirement cost increases.
The committee did not recommend restoring $8 million for at-risk student programs, which is one of the state school board’s budget priorities for this session. It did, however, recommend some of the board’s other priorities such as paying for new computer adaptive tests; college preparations tests; and funding for more technology.
Stephenson, who co-chairs the committee, said after the meeting that Osmond had a good point about the process. "We really should have had that list earlier," Stephenson said of some of the proposed recommendations that were voted on.
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