Omnibus K-12 finance bill OK’d

House K-12 Education Finance Division Chairwoman Mindy Greiling (DFL-Roseville) began the session proposing to stabilize and simplify education funding according to a scalable plan that would eventually equalize state aid to districts across the state and eliminate property tax levies from the funding formula.

The omnibus K-12 education finance bill approved by the division April 15 contains her original plan but makes it effective not next year, but in fiscal year 2014, when the state’s budget will presumably be in better shape, Greiling said. She called the amended version of HF2 a “Spartan bill” that represents “quite an accomplishment” given the enormous deficit made worse by factoring in the effects of inflation.

Although Greiling indicated her distaste for accounting shifts, the bill conforms to House DFL targets by lowering the aid payment shift from 90 percent to 73 percent beginning in fiscal year 2010. However, it would authorize an advance payment shift of 90 percent for school districts in statutory operating debt. It would also reestablish a levy recognition shift at 49.1 percent effective in 2010.

The shifts would bring the education General Fund spending to the targeted $11.6 billion for the biennium. Without them, but including $275.6 million in federal stabilization funding, the cost would be $13.66 billion.

Rep. Pat Garofalo (R-Farmington) does not support the shifts and is disappointed the proposal cuts education spending by $506,000 more than the governor’s education proposal; fails to fund any of his initiatives, such as alternative teacher training plans; doesn’t eliminate a “wasteful” integration revenue program; and sets up expectations for future reform without specifying how to pay for it.

He wondered why education advocates who decried 80 percent shifts in 2003 aren’t opposing the current, harsher shifts.

Rep. Paul Marquart (DFL-Dilworth) suggested that they realize how serious the situation is now and that despite cuts elsewhere “when you can hold 40 percent of the budget harmless in education, it’s showing that education is our top priority. I think this is a bill that makes tough decisions in tough economic and budget times.”

The proposed funding formula changes would eliminate property tax levies to make education completely state aid funded; create new declining enrollment and location equity components of general revenue formula; fully fund the state’s portion of special education spending; remove the concentration factor from some spending categories, such as compensatory and Limited English Proficiency revenue; and increase basic per pupil revenue from $5,124 to $7,500. None would take effect for four years.

Rep. Will Morgan (DFL-Burnsville) successfully offered an amendment to strike an alternative teacher licensure path that would have created a fast track to licensure for some candidates, such as Teach for America volunteers. Rep. Bob Dettmer (R-Forest Lake) won approval for his amendment to adjust how school districts pay the difference between the base active duty military pay and a teacher’s pay to lessen financial consequences for teachers in the National Guard or armed forces reserve members who are called to duty.

Garofalo unsuccessfully offered an amendment to remove the provision allowing schools to start before Labor Day, and successfully offered one calling for an early graduation incentives program working group.

The House Finance and Ways and Means committees are scheduled to hear the bill April 17.