California Du'ers, have you seen the proposed budget cuts? And Arnold is trying to suspend prop 98

AlCzervik

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Fri Jan-11-08 12:21 PM
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California Du'ers, have you seen the proposed budget cuts? And Arnold is trying to suspend prop 98

info on prop 98. The biggest budget cuts look like they are coming right out of education, i'd be willing to pay a little more in taxes to avoid education cuts.

published 12:00 am PST Friday, January 11, 2008

In his budget proposal Thursday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger talked about cutting funding to education, a prospect that immediately raised concerns with local schools officials and families.

How tightly can the state pinch funding for education? What kinds of cuts would local schools have to endure?

The Bee talked with staff at the Legislative Analyst's Office, a nonpartisan state government agency, about what the budget proposals could mean for area schools. And we asked them to explain the California law known as Proposition 98.

Q: What is Proposition 98?

A: Passed by voters in 1988, Proposition 98 created a complex set of formulas establishing how much money the state gives K-12 schools and community colleges. The formulas give education at least 40 percent of the state budget, but the precise portion depends on the state's fiscal condition each year. In general, the funding formulas ensure that each year, education gets more than it did the prior year.

Q: What does Proposition 98 do for schools?

A: It guarantees a minimum amount of funding for them each year, making it harder � but not impossible � for the state to trim spending on schools. Essentially, Proposition 98 assures that the government treats education differently than other state services � such as transportation, prisons and social services � whose budgets fluctuate more widely because they are hammered out in political negotiations every year.

Q: What does it mean to suspend Proposition 98?

A: The law allows the Legislature to toss out Proposition 98 funding formulas with a two-thirds vote and approval from the governor. Suspending Proposition 98 means the minimum funding for education is not guaranteed for a given year and the government funds education at a lower level. State officials keep track of the money that has been cut to schools and create a formula to get the schools back � in future years � to where they would have been had their budgets not been cut.

Q: What would happen if the state suspends Proposition 98?

A: Government would have to treat education funding like other public services, determining how much money to allocate based on a combination of program needs and political pressure. Under the budget proposal the governor presented Thursday � which includes a suspension of Proposition 98 � education funding next year would be cut by about $4 billion compared with what it would have been if Proposition 98 stayed in place.

Q: What impact would I see in my local schools if Proposition 98 is suspended?

A: Responses to the budget cuts would likely vary greatly among the state's 1,000 school districts, depending on what kind of employee union contracts they have and trends in student enrollment. Growing school districts, such as Folsom Cordova Unified, will feel the budget cuts much less than shrinking districts, such as San Juan Unified and Sacramento City Unified, will. Districts that negotiate employee contracts each year will probably try to freeze salaries, while districts where employee contracts are set for three years will be locked into giving raises. Historically, when budgets are reduced, school districts cut back on transportation, lay off employees, increase class sizes, and cut non-mandated activities like like band, electives and field trips.

Go to: Sacbee / Back to story
http://www.sacbee.com/101/v-print/story/626287.html