School funding

How Missouri funds public education will be one of the toughest issues in the legislative session that began last week. The current system is broken. But that may be the only point regarding education funding on which there is consensus.

Adding pressure to the school-funding situation is a statewide lawsuit brought by dozens of districts who want a judge to force the legislature to act. At an education summit last week called by Matt Blunt, who will be sworn in Monday as governor, participants conceded one point raised in the lawsuit: Education funding across Missouri isn't equitable.

But these school districts say there is another component to the funding issue that deserves equal attention: the adequacy of state funding. In other words, these districts maintain, the state isn't spending enough on education.

Looking at alternatives

Funding for elementary and secondary public schools in Missouri already consumes well over a third of the state's general revenue. And early forecasts indicate the next budget year will be marked by revenue increases that fall far below spending demands. Republicans who control the legislature and the governor's office oppose any tax increases. Besides, any tax increase large enough to meet spending demands for education would require a statewide vote. As a result, Blunt has already drawn a line in the sand: Any increases in education funding will have to come through savings in other areas of state government.

One way the state could equalize education funding is to redistribute the money raised by some of the so-called rich districts to districts that are considered poor. Other states have tried that. But most Missouri legislators believe it would be politically impossible to try such a scheme in the Show Me State. As a result, some Senate leaders have already said such a plan won't even be considered in the upper chamber of the legislature.

Another idea discussed at the education summit was finding a new financial base for education. A shift to a designated income tax for education -- along with an increase in the income-tax rate and a corresponding reduction in property taxes -- would generate more funds earmarked for public schools.

More isn't always better

But House Speaker Rod Jetton of Marble Hill, Mo., raises an important point when he questions whether or not more spending is the answer. There are plenty of examples -- the court-ordered spending in Kansas City and St. Louis as the result of desegregation lawsuits comes to mind -- where even huge increases in funding have not produced improvements in the quality of education.

The last rewrite of the state's funding formula for schools was in 1993. Legislators say it takes several years to address an issue this complex and phase in any major changes. The 1993 plan produced one of the largest tax increases in Missouri history -- before voters adopted the requirement for statewide approval for big tax increases.

Finding ways to change -- much less increase -- funding for Missouri's schools will be a difficult and complex process, especially when growth in state revenue is expected to be modest. And consider this: The Department of Social Services has already made a budget request, just to maintain existing services, that is millions of dollars above the anticipated growth in general revenue.

Missouri's money woes are far from over. How the legislature handles education funding will be a major test of the state's ability to meet spending needs without tax increases.