Education cuts the same in Davis’ new budget
Gov. Gray Davis hasn’t made it any easier for local K-12 schools, officials learned last week.
However, he also hasn’t made it harder on them either.
Davis’ revised budget, released this past Wednesday, does little to soften the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District’s $13 million budget shortfall for next year.
K-12 schools weren’t as lucky as Santa Monica College, which was able to close its gap in state funding by about $7 million, said Herb Roney, chair of the SMC board of trustees.
“The bad news is that the budget cuts for the 2003-2004 school year remain at $13 million,” said a statement released from Superintendent John Deasy’s office on Friday. “The good news — no new cuts.”
The May 14 revision includes statewide cuts of $1.5 billion to education. The cuts are the largest decrease in state spending on education since the 1940s.
When all factors are taken into consideration, including a proposed zero cost of living adjustment, the actual cuts total $2.1 billion, according to the release.
“It’s far from adequate in terms of its funding for our schools,” said Harry Keily, president of the Santa Monica Malibu Classroom Teachers Association. “Tough times are ahead for public schools and for students in the years to come.”
School supporters are gearing up for June 3, when residents will vote on Measure S, a proposed flat parcel tax of $225 on every piece of property in Santa Monica and Malibu.
If passed, the parcel tax would generate about $6.5 million annually for the cash-strapped district. The district has already earmarked the cut positions that would be restored if Measure S is approved.
In the meantime, more than 90 teachers have been issued pink slips and more than 100 other employees and administrators are expected to lose their jobs.
“Our schools are an investment in our future,” the release said. “The state’s ongoing fiscal crisis has resulted in more than $4.1 billion in cuts and deferrals over the last two years... Combined, these cuts reduce funding by more than $1,000 per student.”
Federal funds proposed by Davis for special education only add up to about 2 cents per child, the release said.
And that is just a proposed budget. The only way to avoid even further program cuts, according to the release, is for the state to issue its final budget on time.
Other important changes in the May revision include the elimination of funding statewide for the Golden State Exam, $13 million in overall test reductions, $25 million in reduced supplemental instruction, $22.5 million in reduced principal training and $125.4 million in reimbursements, which the state is obligated to provide to schools but has deferred for the second year in a row.
The governor proposed a new $7 million cut in adult education, cutting administrator training, reducing instructional materials, reducing advanced placement offerings and eliminating math academies for middle schoolers.
Further, the governor’s proposal calls for the elimination of the K-4 intensive reading program, reducing gifted and talented education, or GATE, classes, reducing employee retirement plans, cutting library materials and reducing college preparatory courses, school improvement funds and supplemental grants
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 19, 2003. Read the original PDF.