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“This editorial board and many citizens across the state raised this same concern before Brownback signed massive income-tax cuts last year. How could the state afford to lose that much tax revenue, especially when it likely would lose the school-funding lawsuit?” The sales tax extension is being promoted as the key to higher ed funding, additional income tax cuts and additional K-12 funding in the event that the Kansas Supreme Court rules (again!) that the legislature is unconstitutionally underfunding schools. How far can .6 cents go? http://www.kansas.com/2013/04/26/2777799/eagle-editorial-funds-needed-for.html Eagle editorial: Funds needed for schools | Wichita Eagle www.kansas.com...

We are deeply troubled by Brownback’s assertions that the income tax plan has nothing to do with the current struggle over higher ed funding. He claims extending the sales tax that is set to expire will solve the higher ed funding problems. We know that some legislators have agreed to support the sales tax extension but only if it is part of a deal to further cut income taxes, which will wipe out any budget gains from the sales tax increase. When the governor signed this massive tax bill last year, we knew that cuts to education would...

Research shows vouchers, corporate tax credit scholarships and other market based “reforms” that are being pushed in Kansas and multiple other states don’t actually work.  http://www.ncjustice.org/sites/default/files/Public%20Money%20for%20Private%20Schools%20-%20Neovouchers.pdf...

Here’s a piece about how charters are working in Ohio. There are similar articles from multiple other states that have gone down this road, and parent groups are springing up around the country to push back against the forces pushing this agenda. We’re already leading the tax cut experiment. Let’s learn from others and skip the great charter misadventure. http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/editorials/2013/04/06/charters-dont-deserve-state-windfall.html Charters don’t deserve state windfall www.dispatch.com  ...