Will the Democrats eliminate the QEO?

Jason Stein discusses teacher pay caps and the QEO in With Democrats in charge, teacher pay cap could bite the dust:

The QEO law allows school districts to avoid potentially costly arbitration on union contracts as long as they offer teachers a yearly wage and benefit increase of 3.8 percent or more.

Since the law took effect in 1993, the average increase in teachers' salary-and-benefit packages has hovered around 4 percent a year, compared to more than 7 percent in the years immediately preceeding the change.

But the law also bars districts from unilaterally reducing benefits, meaning health insurance costs can eat up much of the allowable increase.

With the current budget deficit and Democrats in charge, it is likely that school funding will be revisited very soon.

"By getting rid of the QEO we'll finally see in Wisconsin a variety of different compensation packages emerge from what we've been locked into for (15) years — depressed teacher salaries, rising benefit costs and nobody very happy with where we're at," Doyle said.

Supporters of the OEO said repealing it would make it impossible for schools to survive under state-imposed revenue caps and would threaten the state's more than decade old system for paying for schools.

Might this be the end of revenue limits altogether?

As Wisconsin's deficit grows, how will the state keep pace with its two-thirds funding committment?

In State deficit forecast rises to $5.4 billion by mid 2011, Steven Walters discusses Governor Doyle's plans to shore up the budget and protect school funding:

Doyle said he wants to avoid raising the sales tax or income taxes. He said his top priorities would be protecting aid for public schools - now about $5.1 billion a year - and for local governments. State aid to local governments helps control property taxes, he said.

"I am going to do everything I possibly can to protect schools," Doyle said. "That doesn't mean they'll get everything they want."

But keeping state government's promise to continue paying about 66% of public school costs will cost an additional $480 million in the next two years, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau.

Democrats in the Wisconsin Legislature call for change

In "Dems look at changing school funding", Shawn Johnson discusses the future of school funding in Wisconsin now that the Democratic party control the state government:

Doyle says he wants to preserve funding for public schools for which the state pays almost two-thirds of their costs.

Actually, the state pays a little over half of public school costs, rather than the "two-thirds" promised when the revenue limits were passed in 1993, which is why districts keep going to referendum and asking local citizens for more money. The state hasn't quite kept up with its end of the bargain.

Johnson writes:

Educators have long said Madison needs to something, because the state’s 15-year-old revenue limits have forced good programs and teachers to fall by the wayside.

The state’s largest teachers’ union says it wants the government limits on school tax revenues and teacher pay and benefit increases.

Residents from the Northwoods plea to reps to fix the formula

In "To Our Representatives in the Northwoods: Fix the Formula", Linda Goldsworthy questions the fairness of the current funding formula:

School District Number of Students State Aid per Student
Dover #1 117 $4,677
Phelps 162 $1,000
Brighton #1 175 $6,510
Washburn 604 $6,798
Three Lakes 609 $ 943
Bruce 613 $6,659
Platteville 1,425 $6,486
Northland Pines 1,439 $1,028
Maple 1,445 $5,558
Shawano 2,889 $6,494
Rhinelander 2,951 $4,332
Elkhorn Area 2,961 $5,114

Why is a student in Three Lakes worth only $943 of state aid while a student in Washburn, with five fewer students, is worth $6,798? In fact, according to the 2006-07 numbers, the 74 students at the all-male Norris High School in Mukwonago received $14,535 per student in state aid while the 91 students at Geneva J4 were worth a mere $193. Fix the formula.

Pension plan woes directly impact cities across Wisconsin

From Pension Plan Woes Could Cost Cities:

The stock market's recent decline and its effect on public employee pension plans may directly impact services available in municipalities such as Eau Claire, Rebecca Noland, the city's finance director, said Friday.

Noland said there is talk that the Wisconsin Retirement System may be considering a 0.5 percent rate increase for employers in 2010.

"That 0.5 percent increase would cost the city's general fund about $115,000 per year and about $150,000 for all city funds, general fund included," Noland said. "We are restricted by levy limits in the amount the city may raise taxes, so we will most likely have to further reduce services in 2010 in order to cover the rate increase."

Investment woes affect districts and communities across the state

David Kestenbaum reports in "Wisconsin's Schools Shocked By Bad Investments" that districts across the state are shocked by the economic crisis that they find themselves in after believing they had made good, safe investments.

"Toxic Debt" in Whitefish Bay threatens teachers' pensions

Anne Szustek reports in "Europe's Toxic Debt Imperils Wisconsin School Districts Finances" that the Whitefish Bay School District may have left itself exposed after some risky business investments.

VOTE!

Today is the day to cast your ballot and make your voice heard. Whether you support the school referendum in your district or not, get out and vote to show your support for your representatives who share your beliefs about school funding. Oh, and I think there may be a presidential election going on as well.