Letters to the Editor
Make a Difference
You may have seen newspaper articles recently about a new bipartisan school funding plan being presented to our state legislature by Reps. John Patterson and Robert Cupp. As president of the school board of Chardon Local Schools, I want to encourage taxpayers that if you ever wanted to see a change in the way our state funds schools, this is the time.
For many years, Ohio and Ohioans have struggled with public school funding. It was found to be unconstitutional three times by the Ohio Supreme Court and still no real change was made.
The formula has been twisted into an unwieldy, unfair and completely incomprehensible mess into which only 15 percent of districts actually fit. All others (85 percent of all districts) are either on a “cap,” which means they cannot get any more funding, or a “guarantee,” which means they cannot get any less funding. This creates dissension and frustration on all sides, most especially taxpayers who vent their frustration with turning down desperately needed levies.
However, there is a new plan — bipartisan and created by Ohio school professionals (school superintendents and treasurers) who have worked on it tirelessly for the last 18 months so that it could be ready to present to the legislature and our new governor.
Basically for the first time ever, an actual cost for educating a child is the basis for this funding plan. The funding for the plan is based on a local district’s personal income (40 percent) and property taxes (60 percent). This funding would not be affected by other districts’ needs; it is based solely on the district where the child resides.
Ohio’s budget will be set in the next two months — by June 30 — and wrangling over school funding has begun. Several things are important for voters to know:
- This funding plan is rational. It is based on the actual cost to educate a child as determined by school superintendents and treasurers who researched it for 18 months.
- This funding plan is fair. It creates a plan that works for every child in the state and is based on what their communities have the capacity to pay.
- No “poor” district will receive less funding than it has received under the current formula and, if the needs of that district change, there is a rational way to make adjustments without affecting other districts.
Please. Contact your legislator now. They do listen to constituents and they will be voting on this within the next two months.
We can make a difference for our schools and our children — our future. If you want more information, you can find it at https://sites.google.com/view/ohiofairschoolfunding.
Madelon Horvath, President
Chardon Schools Board of Education
