Democrats threaten to shut down Maine government over school funding

With less than a month left before statutory adjournment, Democrats have threatened to shut down government if state funding for schools doesn’t reach 55 percent.

Fifty-two Democratic and two independent House members, along with four Democratic senators, have signed a pact to oppose any budget bill that doesn’t have “a progressive and sustainable funding source to reach 55 percent of the cost of our kids’ education as called for by Maine voters.”

The pact does not say explicitly that the signers will oppose any budget that repeals Question 2, but it states clearly that voters “knew what they were doing when they voted to fund education at 55 percent for the second time.”

If this is the first time you’ve read about education funding in Maine, “second time” refers to last year’s referendum and the 2004 referendum that called for 55 percent state funding for K-12 public education in Maine. This battle has been raging for 13 years and counting, and much of the debate lies around what 55 percent really is. Does it include everything, including teacher retirement and health insurance costs or just the stuff that’s covered by state subsidies sent directly to schools?

It’s unsurprising that a group of Democrats is pledging to support Democratic budget priorities that have been named the “Opportunity Agenda,” but what is noteworthy here is the number, which would be enough to block the two-thirds vote needed to enact a biennial state budget.

The Democratic organizers of the letter, Rep. Scott Hamann of South Portland and Rep. Michael Sylvester of Portland, said the effort is about trying to leverage the Legislature to support the will of the voters when it comes to education funding and setting up an ongoing source of direct funding that isn’t prone to political and economic whims.

“Right now, Question 2 does all of those things,” said Sylvester. “The answer can’t be one-time money. It has to be both progressive and sustainable.”

Sylvester and Hamann say Republicans look ready to shut down government over school funding but now they’re drawing their own line in the sand.

Legislative leaders continue to say what they have been saying for weeks: agreement on the state budget bill is still highly uncertain. Senate President Mike Thibodeau, R-Winterport, said Wednesday that negotiations are sputtering, at best, and that education funding and Question 2 are among the issues at the center of the debate.

The Legislature’s budget committee, which is nearing deadlines to make a recommendation on a new two-year $6.8 billion spending plan, are prepared to work through the holiday weekend in search of a solution, but we’re not expecting a resolution until the very last possible moment, if not sometime in July.