Before counting their wads of cash, Snohomish County educators want to see more of Gov. Gary Locke’s proposal to raise the state sales tax 1 cent to raise an additional $1 billion a year for schools.
But that’s not to say they aren’t excited by the prospect.
"I’m not holding my breath," said Martin Boyle, superintendent of the Index School District. "But it would be so cool. I’ve waited for the golden years of education my whole career.
"It would transform education in the state of Washington. It would be wonderful."
Locke on Thursday outlined some details about the proposal.
Flanked by founders of the League of Education Voters, state schools superintendent Terry Bergeson and other education bigwigs, he unveiled details of the Washington Education Trust Fund. The fund would provide new, dedicated and stable funding for education from preschool through college.
To do it, the state’s sales tax would become the highest in the nation, with some cities paying as much as 10 cents on the dollar.
"This is about three things — our kids, our jobs and our future," Locke said at a news conference. "A good education is not only the great equalizer, it’s the key to a vibrant economy and a better quality of life for the citizens of Washington state. Education benefits everyone."
A major component of the plan is for the new money to pay for Initiative 728, a voter-approved measure that was intended to reduce class sizes and provide before- and after-school programs, tutoring and teacher training. Facing a $2.6 billion budget shortfall in 2003, the Legislature froze I-728 funding at existing levels even though it was supposed to increase.
About half of the new money would go to K-12 education, with $400 million going to higher education and $100 million going to early childhood education, including preschools.
Locke plans to talk with House and Senate leaders to decide the best path for the trust fund during the current legislative session, which is his last as governor.
No matter what path is selected, the decision will ultimately be put before voters in November.
The Evergreen Freedom Foundation, a conservative think tank, blasted Locke’s proposal, saying, "If we could significantly increase student learning by spending more money, most of the children in our state would be highly literate by now."
"Our current education system is bulky, cranky, inefficient and expensive," the foundation said in a statement. "It issues mandates and dictates policies that make no sense. It is mostly unaccountable. For the sake of the children we purport to care so much about, why do we tolerate this?"
The proposed trust fund would provide money where it’s needed most, and a citizen oversight board would do regular audits on how the money is used. The Legislature would not be able to use the trust fund to justify cuts or replacement of existing state funding for schools.
Most local school officials are hesitant to latch onto the proposal, either because they don’t believe voters will go along with it or because they’re still not sure if it’s a stable funding source.
"What we need is a consistent funding source that is level over time, so we know what we have on a regular basis," said Carol Whitehead, superintendent of the Everett School District. "I’m not sure that this particular way will solve all the problems, but I’m pleased to know that people are concerned about education."
Edmonds School District Superintendent Wayne Robertson predicted "a tough sell" for the proposal, but said he supports the governor.
"I think the best-case scenario would be a less aggressive tax," Robertson said. "It’s unfortunate we are so reliant on the sales tax, but that seems to be our only tool at this time."
Al Robinson, Sultan’s school superintendent, is concerned about the way the $1 billion would be split up. K-12 education gets half the money even though it serves more than three times as many students as the state’s colleges and universities — with 1 million K-12 students and a nearly 300,000 public higher education enrollment.
"I have several kids in the higher education system, and I’m certainly a proponent of it," Robinson said. "But if we get (the funding) watered down too much, it’s not doing what it’s meant to do."
Index superintendent Boyle said his 53-student school district lost $300,000 in state funding last year and had to cut hugely successful summer school and after-school programs.
"It takes money to change a culture. It takes money to do the things they’re talking about," Boyle said. "Instead of tearing down programs, we’d be building programs. It would be a whole different mind-set."
Reporter Victor Balta: 425-339-3455 or vbalta@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
