SCHOOL-FUNDING AMENDMENT : Education groups to pursue fall vote
Projections from the Ohio Department of Education obtained by The Dispatch show the proposal, if approved by voters, would boost total state aid to public schools by 50 percent over the next nine years. That's an increase of $3.2 billion.
Some supporters have said that they might need to wait until the November 2008 presidential election to have more time to collect signatures, raise campaign money and build support.
But those concerns were pushed aside yesterday, at least for now, during a private meeting of advocates for the school-funding amendment.
"We are going forward with an all-volunteer effort and doing what we can to get on the November ballot," Jim Betts, head of Getting It Right for Ohio's Future, said afterward.
The coalition has until Aug. 8 to submit signatures of 402,276 registered voters for the issue to appear on the Nov. 6 ballot. With two months to go, they've collected about 100,000 names, Betts said.
Other supporters declined to comment, saying they had agreed that only Betts would speak on behalf of the campaign.
Although some have suggested that the proposal might benefit from higher voter turnout in the presidential race, Betts said, 2008 also will be more expensive because of competition for television advertising time.
If approved, the amendment would guarantee a "high-quality education as a fundamental right for Ohio's public-school children" and shift much of the financial burden for funding schools from local property owners to the state.
The Ohio Board of Education would identify the components and put a price tag on such an education, and the General Assembly would have to fund it. The new funding system would be phased in over three years.
According to the Education Department's analysis, per-pupil aid would increase from $5,403 this year to $7,883 in 2016 -- a 46 percent increase over nine years.
Over the past nine years under the current system, per-pupil aid has increased at a slightly higher rate, from $3,663 in 1998 to $5,403 in 2007. That's a 48 percent jump.
Betts did not dispute the analysis but said the campaign has tried to downplay the precise amount by which a district would benefit because factors such as enrollment can alter projections.
"We took a look at it and tried to analyze (the projections) but for purposes of the campaign we really have to deal with concepts," he said.
Supporters say the constitutional amendment would guarantee schools a more reliable and predictable funding base and reduce the frequency of local levies.
Under the current system, the General Assembly sets the amount to go to public schools in the two-year state budget.
During the six years the Ohio Supreme Court was considering a lawsuit challenging the state's school-funding system, state aid to schools increased an average of 7.5 percent annually.
But since the court relinquished control over the matter in December 2006, annual increases to schools have plunged to 2.4 percent.
Gov. Ted Strickland's proposed budget would increase per-pupil state aid 2.5 percent in 2008 and 4 percent the following year.
But the impact on individual districts varies, with more than 200 receiving no additional state aid either year of the budget. Of the 16 school districts in Franklin County, 10 are flat-funded the next two years under the governor's plan.
Under the constitutional amendment, supporters say all schools would benefit in the long run.
According to the Education Department analysis, only four Franklin County districts would receive no increase in state aid over the next two years under the proposed amendment.
posted by Kathie Bracy at 12:31 PM
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