The governor has signed the bill to move local elections to the fall. We share these concerns. “[T]here are a number of other questions about this law. Primary among those is why legislators felt it necessary to change a system that had worked well for decades. Advocates of the law say it will boost voter turnout because people are more accustomed to voting in November. That’s a questionable claim that really wasn’t supported with any data during legislative discussions. “On the down side, the new election calendar will mean that school board members now will take office in...
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Administration threatens cuts to schools during tax debate
“In a startling turn of events, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback’s administration has revealed last-minute threatened cuts of nearly $200 million to K-12 schools, including Johnson County’s prized districts. “Figuratively, the governor appears willing to shoot the already-beleaguered schools in the foot, making them bear further financial pain because his cherished income tax breaks for businesses have drained money needed to provide crucial state services. “It’s the newest ploy being used by Brownback to force the Kansas Legislature to pass the largest tax increase in state history and close a $400 million budget gap.” Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/yael-t-abouhalkah/article23640895.html Update: the...
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Leave a Comment SW KS schools anxious about funding
“Incoming USD 457 Superintendent Steve Karlin said next year Garden City Public Schools will cut the equivalent of 5.5 administrative positions including 4 full-time associate principal positions and 1.5 positions at the district’s central office. “Cuts to specific programs within the district eliminated 8.4 teaching positions including 4 full-time elementary positions, 3 middle-level positions, 1 high school position and a part-time nursing position… “’If we must maintain flat funding to keep doing what we do, we have to cut programs because our allocation from the state isn’t being increased because of inflation,’ Karlin said. “Sen. Larry Powell, R-Garden...
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Leave a Comment Cuts to education threatened as tax bill debated
Remember when we said we were skeptical about the “certainty” of the block grant funding? We still are. Although the across-the-board cuts, including 6.2% to education were avoided when the tax bill was passed, we still see that cuts to education are not “off the table” when budgets are tight. “Budget Director Shawn Sullivan said that without tax increases, the most likely option for Brownback is cutting $400 million from a budget approved by legislators for the fiscal year beginning July 1, to avoid a deficit. He said the cuts would most likely be a 6.2 percent across-the-board...
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