Some legislators and our governor are claiming that the allotment cuts of 1.5% to Kansas K-12 schools is a “reduction in the increase in school funding”, but this type of spin is irresponsible. The allotment is coming out of the Base State Aid Per Pupil and thus directly impacts every student in Kansas.
“As drastic as the rescission bill is, it was not enough to close the budget gap we face this fiscal year. The governor announced additional cuts on Thursday, this time directly cutting education funding. K-12 will see a decrease of 1.5 percent and higher education will see a decrease of 2 percent, effective March 7 and applying to the current fiscal year. The cut to K-12 comes directly out of Base State Aid Per Pupil, amounting to a decrease of $41.75 per pupil across the board (a total of $1.4 million for SMSD). Without the rescission bill, education was in the crosshairs and these cuts would have been much deeper.”