Here's a better way to cut education budget

Late last month, Gov. Tim Kaine unveiled his plan to close the $3 billion two-year commonwealth budget shortfall, proposing to slash $700 million in Virginia’s public education funding.

During the current legislative session, it is the General Assembly’s duty to review all of the governor’s proposals and make changes as the legislators deem necessary. While public education will face spending cuts, it is my sincere hope that we will be able to limit them.

As proposed by Gov. Kaine, these reductions include $82.5 million in cuts to school con-struction funds, the elimination of a planned 2 percent pay raise for teachers, and a $340 million cut in state funding of the Standards of Quality.

The SOQ represent the bulk of state funding for public K-12 education — nearly 90 percent — and set minimum mandatory objectives for accreditation, testing requirements, teacher salaries and school staffing.

Rather than SOQ structural changes such as layoffs, I would prefer to make temporary reductions. As a member of the Joint Subcommittee on Elementary and Secondary Education Funding which met throughout the fall, I, working with public education advocacy groups, have identified nearly $300 million in savings by making less painful cuts at the state level, such as freezing teacher salaries until revenue projections improve and holding off on new textbook purchases for two years. In contrast, the current proposal would cap SOQ funding for 13,000 support personnel positions, including clerical workers, finance officers and curriculum specialists. Left unamended, this cap would result in SOQ cuts, and although this proposal is aimed at trimming personnel, local school boards would still receive fewer dollars to spend on instruction, leading to larger class sizes and reduced services for students.

The Alliance for Virginia’s Students asserts that under the governor’s proposal, state funding for school districts in the 17th Senatorial District would stand to lose approximately $31 million in state aid and 526 positions that provide direct services to students or support teachers during fiscal year 2010.

The table provides a breakdown by locality:
-Culpeper County ($6.2 million, 92 positions)
-City of Fredericksburg ($609,000, 28 positions)
-Louisa County ($2.7 million, 50 positions)
-Madison County ($1.2 million, 20 positions)
-Orange County ($3.4 million, 61 positions)
-Spotsylvania County ($17.0 million, 275 positions)

For more information, visit vastudents.org

Education represents a vital investment in Virginia’s future. I am continuing to work diligently with my colleagues in the Senate and with the governor to craft a budget that lessens funding cuts for education and other core services of great benefit within the 17th District and across the commonwealth.

Houck serves Culpeper, Orange and Madison counties as well as Louisa and parts of Spotsylvania and the city of Fredericksburg in the State Senate.