By Paige Campbell
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-471965.mp3
Show Me the Money: A Student Voices Editorial
Dallas, TX –
When I was a kid, I hated to clean the bathroom. I just wanted to pick up my dirty clothes, but my mom would insist that I do a real cleaning before things got out of hand. Texas legislators are faced with the same dilemma on the issue of school finance. Finding the current state school finance system unconstitutional, Judge John Dietz has ordered the legislature to do a deep cleaning. The legislature has responded by merely wiping the counters and sweeping dirt under the mat. To truly clean up school finance, the state will have to tackle the source of the problem, which is: we need more money.
Last fall, state District Judge Dietz ruled that "[The Texas] school finance system fails to provide an adequate, suitable, and efficient education system." As a response to this ruling, the Texas House of Representatives put forth House Bill no.2. This bill addresses teacher pay raises, property tax cuts, and the reduction of unspecified "inefficiencies," but it fails to provide a substantial increase in funds.
Why do we need more funding? Though the cost of education rises each year due to new mandates, the source of funding has remained stagnant. A burgeoning population, along with inflation, has made it difficult to keep pace. Most schools are taxing property at the $1.50 cap and can no longer raise taxes to increase funds. Though districts struggle with the current rate, the House proposes to lower it to $1.00. Lowering taxes, coupled with teacher pay raises, will cost over $8 billion in extraneous expenses on top of the burden of financing at current levels. A subtractive solution is not the answer.
Perhaps the most grievous fault of the bill is that it harbors inequity among students under the guise of lower taxes. Representative Peter Gallego illustrated this inequity in an analysis of two neighboring houses - one in Dallas, the other in Highland Park. The student from Highland Park, under this bill, would receive an additional $3000, while his Dallas neighbor would receive a mere $275. A system that allows such inequalities, that punishes kids for being born in the wrong part of town, is not acceptable. We are getting rid of Robin Hood because it steals from the rich, but we have replaced it with a plan that essentially robs the poor.
What we need is a system that will equip children with the proper tools to survive life after high school. We need more money to retain good teachers and recruit new ones. We need more money to invest in technology so that kids can keep up with the changing world. We need more money to guarantee all students have basic tools such as textbooks at their disposal.
How do we get this money? Simple. We pay for it. Judge Dietz put it well when he said, "Education costs money, but ignorance costs more money." Rather than slicing property taxes as House Bill no.2 proposes, Texans will have to pony up the money to invest in our kids' future. An educated populace has no price tag.
House Bill no.2 is simply not a viable option because insufficient funds and inequity still exist. Maybe the Senate will be the one to scrub the school finance problem clean with their proposal to install a mandatory business tax. Maybe we need to admit to ourselves that our children's education is worth some sacrifices. Until the legislature addresses the issue of putting more money in the hands of school districts, their hands are dirty, the bathroom floor is filthy, and someone still needs to call in a maid.
Paige Campbell is a senior at Nimitz High School in Irving.
Works Cited
Irving ISD Profile Budget and State School Finance. Irving: 2005.
"Judge Declares Texas School Funding Inadequate and Unconstitutional." Access.Electronic. 14 December 2004. 19 April 2005
King, Michael. "Judge Dietz Finds School Finance System Unconstitutional." AustinChronicle.com,17 September 2004. 19 April 2005
"Outline for Senate Bill 2." Texas Children First. Electronic. January 2005. 15 April 2005.
Stutz, Terrence. "House Passes School Finance Plan." DallasNews.com. 10 March 2005. 30 March 2005
More information
Read the other winning editorials
Listen to excerpts from the April 2 forum "Funding Education: Students Speak Out!"
Visit the North Texas Student Voices site
More Texas Legislature and North Texas government coverage from KERA's Voter's Voice
Visit the Annenberg Public Policy Center website