09/15/2011 - Inforum (Fargo-Moorhead): Minnesota lawmakers seek to hide budget plan's effects, by Cynthia Moothart
Minnesota lawmakers seek to hide budget plan's effects
By Cynthia Moothart
Following a legislative session marked by unprecedented political rancor that eventually shut down the government, it's hard to imagine things could get worse. But now comes this: With passage of the Republican budget in July, a historic number of school districts across the state will be forced to ask for help this November just to educate our kids.
The final tabulation of levy requests won't be available until Friday, but a survey by the Minnesota School Board Association found that 133 districts, about a third statewide, are looking to make up budget shortfalls by going directly to voters. (Sixteen districts did not complete the survey.)
Of those, only a dozen cited capital projects as the reason for additional funding; the vast majority of districts need day-to-day help simply to keep classrooms a vital place for learning.
That large number has raised the ire of Republican lawmakers, who claim that their budget adequately addressed the needs of schools.
These same lawmakers are now trying to pressure administrators into abandoning their levy plans - and vow a fight against those appearing on the ballot.
State Rep. Pat Garofalo, a Farmington Republican and chairman of the House Education Finance Committee, is leading the charge, denouncing these districts for "abusing the process."
In an interview Monday with Minnesota Public Radio, he said:
"Unfortunately, we have some school boards that are using people's generosity to engage in the fleecing of taxpayers, and that's just not acceptable."
Republicans like Garofalo claim that their budget provides for an average bump of nearly $500 in per-pupil spending starting next year.
But an independent analysis by Beth Hawkins, a journalist with the award-winning online news site MinnPost, finds that accounting tricks underpin this so-called windfall. In reality, the only real new money in the education pot this year and next comes from Gov. Mark Dayton, who demanded a $50 increase in per-pupil spending.
"The GOP leadership arrived at the numbers via a wholly new calculation that depicts public education as the session's big winner, not by using the traditional method of calculating ups and downs in education revenue," Hawkins noted.
After taking control of the Minnesota House and Senate in January, Republicans pursued a budget plan opposed by nearly two-thirds of all Minnesotans. They're now using strong-arm tactics and budget trickery to cover up its effects and punish those who would speak the truth about it.
Republicans, it seems, could use some schooling in civics - as well as math.
