Not enough.
That was the ruling turned in by the Kansas Supreme Court Monday which says lawmakers failed to meet the adequacy requirement in Article 6 of the Kansas Constitution to fund K-12 schools. The court also ruled that the state has met the equity violations identified in its October 2017 decision.
The court is withholding any remedial action until June 30, 2019, to allow lawmakers time to come up with a new funding plan. Earlier this year, lawmakers passed a school funding bill that would infuse more than $500 million over five years into public education. The court’s primary concern is under the bill there is an inflationary factor that kicks in after the full implementation of the formula. The court would like to see that kick in from the beginning.
Senate Vice President Jeff Longbine of Emporia tells KVOE News, the decision is a step in the right direction for the legislature.
51st District Representative Ron Highland of Wamego says he’s disappointed in the court’s decision, stating the justices overstepped their bounds once again.
Highland says a constitutional amendment may be necessary for the legislature to get the courts out of the school funding decision altogether and says he believes there will be enough support for such a measure when lawmakers reconvene in January.
Following the court’s decision Gov. Jeff Colyer released the following statement:
“As a doctor, I know it is important to see continuous improvement. We will maintain a sharp focus on sending dollars to the classroom without raising taxes. I look forward to building upon the work we did together this year to address the remaining issues identified in the ruling.”
Other area lawmakers including 60th District Representative Mark Schreiber of Emporia and 76th District Representative Eric Smith of Burlington are withholding comment on the court’s ruling until further review.
USD 253 Emporia Assistant Superintendent Rob Scheib will join KVOE’s 8:05 a.m. newscast for further reaction Tuesday morning.
Read the full decision by clicking here.
10:30 a.m. Monday – Supreme Court ruling on education funding set for Monday afternoon
TOPEKA — The Kansas Supreme Court will issue its ruling on the adequacy of public education funding Monday afternoon.
The high court held oral arguments in Gannon v. Kansas last month after telling lawmakers to increase the amount of money going into K-12 education. Lawmakers approved a plan to infuse over $500 million over five years. Attorney General Derek Schmidt has argued the proposal is constitutionally compliant. Attorneys representing school districts, however, say the new money is still woefully short of what’s needed to properly fund education.
A decade ago, lawmakers agreed to add around $500 million a year to K-12 education. Once the Great Recession hit, lawmakers backed away from that promise and education funding has been a constant court battle since then.
KVOE News will have the court findings for you, and we’ll have reaction from local lawmakers and education officials this week on KVOE and KVOE.com.
