Local legislators express cautious hope for school funding fix

Published 10:48 am Monday, December 21, 2009

It has been a tough couple of years for schools in Washington and local lawmakers realize it. Unfortunately, it is probably going to get worse for school districts in the next year, rather than better.

In a meeting with State Representatives Marcie Maxwell (D-Renton) and Judy Clibborn (D-Mercer Island), the general feeling was one of caution to members of the Mercer Island School District. The state representatives know that things are tough on the local level, but at least from an education standpoint, Maxwell said she felt that she and her colleagues had made a big step in the right direction during the last session by passing the education reform bill.

“That doesn’t mean we’ve waved our magic wand and were able to get everything remedied,” Maxwell cautioned. “It certainly means we’re headed in the right direction with what I hope is a strong commitment to education in Washington state.”

Maxwell, who was appointed to the Quality Education Council (QEC), a group established by the reform bill to look at various aspects of education in the state, said she understands how hard it has been on schools lately.

“I think we all know we’re going to experience a tough budget year again as the recession continues,” she said. “We’ll be moving out of this, but moving out at a much slower pace. I know it’s tough out here for you folks. Having come from a school board background, I understand that we were having to make cuts every year and you’re continuing to have to do that. Every school district’s been doing a great job of band-aiding, quiet frankly, what the state hasn’t covered. One of these days, we need to remedy that and I hope we’re on pace to make that happen. It’s just a little cloudy right now.”

One of the Mercer Island board’s concerns is that the public thinks the district will be able to carry on, despite getting less money, because of the generosity of the community and the Mercer Island Schools Foundation (MISF).

“That doesn’t mean, however, that School Board members can provide our students with the best possible education given the cuts we have to make,” said Board Member Pat Braman. “We live in a community that has been incredibly generous, both in the lean years and in the good year, but now we are having to cut into those things. It’s really a difficult and painful thing.”

During the last budget, the Mercer Island School District faced cuts from the state, but was largely able to fill the gaps by shuffling staff and adding more responsibilities to many people while making the most of funds raised by the PTSA and the Schools Foundation. With more cuts this year, it is unlikely that those tactics would work again, as the state asks districts to stretch even farther.

Unlike last year, as Clibborn pointed out, there were no new sources of revenue added to the budget, or really even seriously proposed. This time around, Clibborn said she expects things to change as the state wrestles with deeper cuts.

“What I think really needs to be clear if we go out for new revenue is that it would be after the cuts. If we really go through and scrub the budget out and then go out for new revenue, we might be able to keep it, but we have to know where it’s going. I think that’s been very cloudy when you look at what people are proposing for new revenue. It’s not always where you’d want it to go,” explained Clibborn.

Gov. Chris Gregoire’s first proposed budget was released earlier this month, projecting a $2.6 billion shortfall. The governor has said she will create another budget to be released sometime in January which will hopefully find ways to restore programs the December budget cut. The second budget will also include possible revenue sources, such as eliminating tax exemptions.

The next legislative session begins on Jan. 11, 2010.