AUGUSTA — A bill that attempts to make local school funding contributions more equitable by basing them on pupil count came before the Educational and Cultural Affairs Committee on Monday and faced opposition from the state’s top education officials.
Rep. Phyllis Ginzler, R-Bridgton, offered LD 876, an Act to Encourage Equity in School Funding by Limiting a Municipality’s Contribution based on its Student Enrollment, after speaking with Harrison’s town manager and Board of Selectmen.
The driving force behind the bill is that while Harrison has higher property values because of its extensive lakefront property, the small, agricultural town of roughly 2,700 year-round residents does not send as many students to School Administrative District 17 as some of the larger towns in the district. But Harrison pays more per student than these larger towns, Town Manager George “Bud” Finch said in his written testimony.
But Ginzler’s bill wouldn’t apply to just Harrison or SAD 17, but to school districts across the state.
“I am aware that other districts and other towns within those districts face the inequitable burden of school funding,” she said.
Harrison Selectman Richard St. John was in attendance at Monday’s hearing and first read Finch’s comments because he was out of state.
“We requested our representative, Phyllis Ginzler of Bridgton, to submit this legislation, not as a challenge to the funding formula as a whole but as a means to draw attention to what can happen when we as government create legislation that, while basically fair, has those instances where a few communities may benefit far better than others, while a few others may fall into a circumstance of the funding formula being inherently unfair,” Finch wrote.
Harrison is considered a non-receiver, or wealthy community, when it comes to state education funding, while Norway, Paris and Oxford are labeled as receivers, or less wealthy, Finch wrote, noting his testimony wasn’t an attack on the other towns. His numbers showed that Harrison has more than 10 percent of the student population, or 354 students, enrolled in SAD 17, significantly less than the three towns mentioned.
But because Harrison has the highest property valuation of the four, it contributes the most to SAD 17 and pays the most per pupil. Harrison pays roughly $10,500 per student, as opposed to Norway, Paris and Oxford, which pay between $3,400 and $4,900 per student.
“I would consider that taxation without representation,” St. John said. “If we’re paying 20 percent of the school district, then why don’t we have 20 percent of the school board members?”
During his testimony, St. John recalled in 1995 the town entered negotiations to change the local school funding formula to be based on 75 percent town valuation and 25 percent student population, which was implemented over five years. This worked well for the town and was undone in 2007 with the passing of an amendment.
St. John was asked if he would be willing to go back to the negotiating table again.
“It is safe to say I would enjoy the chance to do that again,” he answered. “Fairness is all we’re looking for today.”
Ginzler contends her bill wouldn’t change the Essential Programs and Services funding formula. But those in the education field disagree.
The measure, which could dramatically change the way public schools are funded, faces stiff opposition, including Republican Gov. Paul LePage’s administration.
Suzan Beaudoin, director of school finances and operations for the state Department of Education, told those on the Legislature’s Education Committee on Monday the shift would cost the state $120 million.
Also testifying against the bill was Elaine Tomaszewski, associate executive director of the Maine School Management Association, made up of school superintendents and principals.
“In its current form, the bill would substantially cut funding for schools statewide by altering the local share of the funding formula,” Tomaszewski said. She said previous work the committee and the Legislature have done to review the funding formula for Essential Programs and Services should drive any changes.
“In general, we oppose any effort to redesign the funding formula on a piecemeal basis because it creates unintended and untenable consequences,” Tomaszewski said.
Also opposing the bill is the Maine Education Association, the state’s powerful teachers’ union, which includes a majority of public school teachers.
“This bill would greatly reduce the required municipality contribution toward the total cost of education for some municipalities, frustrating the equitable distribution of state funding in the school funding formula,” C.J. Betit, the MEA’s director of collective bargaining and research said Monday.
Betit said the real solution for towns like Harrison and others was for the state to fully fund its share of public education as it is currently prescribed in law at 55 percent of a district’s costs.
“While the MEA understands and sympathizes with the impacts of an increased mill rate putting pressure on local property taxes, the answer to relieve that pressure is with the state contribution making strides to reach the 55 percent funding level,” Betit said, “not altering the equity in the funding system.”
State Sen. Brian Langley, R-Ellsworth, the Senate’s co-chairman of the committee, said Tuesday that a number of bills before the committee that aim to reform the funding formula don’t recognize its complexities and how a formula adjustment can have unintended consequences.
Like Betit, Langley said he believes any changes to the formula should be based on a study and report with recommendations the Legislature commissioned four years ago. He said that study steers the funding formula away from paying districts per pupil to achieve standards set out in the state’s Learning Results law and instead to fully and holistically fund education at the local level.
He said for towns like Harrison that may feel they are paying more than their fair share for local public schools, they need to address that within the agreements they have as members of a local district or regional school unit.
“I believe that’s the place where it will end up,” Langley said. “I don’t know that we can mandate that that process be used but it is carefully negotiated by the folks that are in (the school district).”
The bill will be the subject of a committee work session, where lawmakers will vote on a recommendation either for or against the legislation. That work session has not yet been scheduled.
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