10
Thursday, February 14. 1974
University Daily Kansan
Local School District Is Desperate for Money; Superintendent Wants Budget Limit Increase
By BOB MARCOTTE
Several bills now before the Kansas Legislature would directly affect the operations and funding of the Lawrence school district to Carl Knox, president of schools.
Knox discussed the bills Monday night at a meeting of the Lawrence Area PTA (LA) on Tuesday.
He attached the greatest importance to a House bill that would raise a 5 per cent limit on budget increases to 1 per cent. The limit is set at the point where the school districts. The Lawrence school district is included in the 5 per cent limit, which was passed during last year's session as part of the legislation.
The 5 per cent limit means the school district can't increase its budget more than 5 per cent over the previous year's budget. Knox said. The 5 per cent limit applies to those districts whose costs per student email or exceed the statewide average cost.
The new legislation, Knox said, would raise that limit to a 7 per cent increase above the previous year's budget. It was introduced, Knox said, because of economic conditions that have developed in the state during the past year. Knox said inflation was hurting the schools as much as it was hurting the average consumer.
He gave the following examples of rising costs:
Paper selling for 76 cents a ream this year will cost the school district $1.05 a
—Bulk gas that the school district bought for 23 cents a gallon last year is being bought on a month-to-month basis for 38 cents a gallon.
—the costs of basic instruction supplies such as thumb tacks, rubber bands and art markers.
"What they will be in the future we don't know," Knox said.
—The school district pays $100 a month
for trash collecting services from the city,
but cost will increase to $100 a month.
Passage of the 71 per cent limit is needed desperately. Knox said.
Without it, he said, "I think the hand-writing is pretty clear on the wall that it's going to be a tight squeeze to maintain even our present person."
Given the 5 per cent limitation, he said, school personnel are having to settle for pay increases that can't match the 8.8 per cent rise in the cost of living. The sacrifice is even greater, he said, because professors are larger holders of unions are drawing larger increases.
Knox said he thought there was a very good chance that the budget increase bill would be acted upon favorably. Representatives of the state's public schools, including the School Association, PTA chairmen, the United School Administration and the state Department of Education met in Topeka Monday, Knox said, and agreed that passage of the bill was urgent and necessary. Legislators will probably treat the bill as a measure for the House Ways and Means Committee can find funds to help finance the increase.
Another critical item before the legislature is a senate bill that would establish a state public school and vocational educational programs in the local school districts. Those programs were excluded from the basic finance formula and are now funded through local mill funds.
The new legislation is aimed at "power equalization," Knox said, which would provide for a more balanced contribution of revenue for the programs by the state and the local district, depending upon the wealth of the local district.
It would result in lower property taxes in the local districts and allow greater tax incentives.
The bill would also remove a current requirement that local school districts must pay the tuition costs of high school graduates from the district who go on to vocational-technical schools, even in other parts of the state.
district has levied but is not able to use for its own benefit.
The Lawrence school district, he said, pays about $22,000 a year for students attending vocational-technical schools throughout the state.
Passage of the power equalization bill and the budget limitation bill depends upon the amount of state funds the House Ways and Means committee will have to apply to the bills. The committee must establish priorities in the allocation of state funds. Those priorities will affect both pieces of legislation, he said.
willing to devote time & energy to the Senate.
RICHARD MEISEL is:
—a candidate for Student Senate from Liberal Arts & Sciences.
—interested in helping the Student Senate realize its potential for the students.
This is money, Knox said, that the school.
L. A.&S. Students Vote for Richard Meisel on Feb. 13 & 14.
Pd. for by Richard Meisel campaign committee
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