Adequately funding public education is the best investment we can make for our students' future and for the future of California. The Governor's 2006-07 budget proposal, while a start, falls short of fully funding education and keeping the promise made to public schools and kids.
California's schools and students need, and voters expect, the Governor to keep his promise to repay the money borrowed from Proposition 98. That money is desperately needed to restore smaller class sizes, to buy up-to-date textbooks, and to attract and retain high quality teachers and other educators.
According to a 2006 Education Week report "Quality Counts," California ranks 43rd in the nation in per-pupil spending. California's schools also continue to have some of the largest class sizes and the greatest shortages of librarians, counselors and other critical support staff.
While the Governor states that education is his top priority, his budget tells a different story. The budget proposal fails to address more than $3 billion, or approximately $500 per student, owed to schools for the 2004-05 and 2005-06 school years. The Governor has a constitutional obligation to fund Proposition 98 and repay the money that was borrowed from our schools and students.
The Governor's proposal to fund Proposition 49 with Proposition 98 funds without increasing the guarantee, as required by law, violates the commitment the Governor made to voters and the education community when they passed the initiative in 2002. Proposition 49 would reduce the amount owed schools under Proposition 98 by $428 million.
The Governor also promised to pay schools for unfunded mandates. Yet his proposal for 2006-07 pays for only a fraction of the unreimbursed state mandates.
Teachers, parents and the entire Education Coalition will continue to work with the Governor and the Legislature to restore the funding that has been cut from our schools and adequately fund all of our classrooms so all students have access to the best education possible.
