Governor's budget relies on revenue plan to avoid deeper cuts
Governor's budget relies on revenue plan to avoid deeper cuts
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 5, 2012By:
Susan Aronson, 916-212-8937
SACRAMENTO, CA — In an unexpected move today—due to an inadvertent posting of the proposal on the Department of Finance’s website—Gov. Jerry Brown released his January budget proposal for 2012-13, well ahead of the constitutionally required Jan. 10 deadline. The governor uses a variety of approaches to close an anticipated $9.2 billion shortfall, proposing $4.2 billion in cuts primarily to education and health and human services, increasing revenues and making other funding shifts.
The increase in revenues would be realized only if voters approve a $6.9 billion revenue plan the governor hopes will qualify for the November 2012 ballot. The governor's plan calls for increasing the personal income tax on the state’s wealthiest taxpayers and boosting sales taxes by one-half percent for five years.
For K-14 schools, the approval of such a revenue package would mean an increase of $2.5 billion. Combined with the natural increase in the Proposition 98 guarantee, funding would jump to $52.5 billion in 2012-13, up from $47.6 in the current year. This increase in funding would be used to reduce inter-year deferrals by $2.3 billion.
The governor once again proposes a trigger mechanism in the spending plan that would be pulled if voters reject his initiative providing for new revenues. This would result in the Proposition 98 guarantee dropping by $2.4 billion. Additional savings would be achieved by shifting debt service on school bonds into the guarantee. This results in a $4.8 billion reduction to Proposition 98 programmatic funding. This reduction would include the elimination of the $2.2 billion repayment for deferrals noted above and an additional reduction of $2.6 billion that, according to the governor, would equate to shortening the school year by three weeks.
New Funding Model
The governor’s budget contains some significant proposals for school finance that restructures how schools are funded. The governor proposes to implement a "weighted student formula" funding model that in concept is based on the plan spelled out in the “Getting Down to Facts” studies that came out of Stanford University in 2007. Under the proposed funding model, each student would generate a base grant amount and unspecified weights that come with additional funding would be added for English learners and students who qualify for free and reduced-price meals. There would be an additional weight—and funding—when there are high concentrations of at-risk students.
The funding for the weighted formula would be provided by consolidating all but a handful of categorical programs into a single funding source. Excluded from this would be federally mandated programs such as special education as well as funding for school nutrition and afterschool programs established by Proposition 49. This new model would be phased in over five years.
In the interim, additional flexibility would be provided, expanding the list of flexibility programs to include those that would be used to provide the funding for the new weighted student formula. The most notable included are K-3 Class Size Reduction, Economic Impact Aid and Home to School Transportation.
Mandates
The spending plan maintains the elimination of most mandated programs and those not eliminated would be included in a block grant. Districts could opt to access funds from the $200 million mandate block grant and in return would agree to comply with the requirements of the mandates that remain. Excluded from the block grant—and still required of districts—would be mandates related to health and safety issues, such as immunizations, as well as collective bargaining. The proposal also addresses significant outstanding mandates, the second science course required for high school graduation and Behavioral Intervention Plans by eliminating the mandates and making them discretionary.
Transitional Kindergarten
Under the proposal, the phased-in changes to the entrance age for kindergarten starting with the 2012-13 school year would remain; however, the requirement that districts offer placement in a transitional kindergarten program would be eliminated. Districts would be able to offer it at their discretion, but would not receive additional funding.
This effectively begins the 2012-13 budget season in Sacramento. In the immediate future, decisions will need to be made about which funding initiative various interest groups will get behind. Although the Governor is going to push hard for his measure, other measures provide more revenue to schools.
Legislative hearings will begin in earnest in the coming weeks.