More than 60 School Districts Sue Kansas Over Budget Cuts (KS)

November 3, 2010

A coalition of 63 Kansas school districts sued the state Tuesday, alleging that cuts to education spending violate the state Constitution.

The lawsuit seeks to compel lawmakers to reverse budget cuts made in response to the economic downturn.

But it’s likely to be years before the case is settled. A previous school finance lawsuit tou ched off a bitter constitutional tug-of-war in 2005 that ended with legislators grudgingly adding nearly $1 billion in new school dollars.

The suit was filed in Shawnee County by the group Schools for Fair Funding. The Kansas City, Kan., school district is among four named plaintiffs in the suit, but the coalition also includes the Gardner-Edgerton, Basehor-Linwood, Bonner Springs and Turner districts.

The suit contends lawmakers cut more than $303 million from schools since the downturn began — even though lawmakers had previously agreed to increase funding.

“This train wreck was certainly foreseeable,” said John Robb, the attorney representing Schools for Fair Funding. “Those who oppose public education never intended to make good on their commitment to the children of Kansas. They intentionally cut state revenues and then pleaded poverty when it came time to fund the formula.”

But the sour economy’s effect on state finances is no illusion, countered state Senate Vice President John Vratil, a Leawood Republican.

Vratil, a lawyer, is an expert on school finance and said the Legislature had no choice but to cut school funding. He said he hopes the Supreme Court will take that into consideration.

“The court has to be realistic,” he said. “They need to appreciate the current economic condition and where the state finds itself with its budget.”

It could be three to four years before the Supreme Court ultimately decides the case. Meanwhile, several factors could make the case moot, Vratil noted. Lawmakers could change the school finance formula. Or they could increase funding when the economy recovers. Either move could render the case irrelevant.
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If the court rules against the state again, Vratil warned, it probably would set off another confrontation between the Legislature and the judiciary.

David A. Smith, a spokesman for the Kansas City, Kan., school district, said the suit could provide an opportunity for Kansas to decide what kind of education it wants to offer.

“Do they want one where the ZIP code that a student lives in or the income of their parents determines the quality of their education?” Smith asked.

The district has cut at least $31 million from its budget, including teachers, class aides, administrators and janitors.

“We always say in KCK we want to be held accountable for getting children to higher levels of achievement, but we also need the resources to be able to do that,” Smith said.

Spring Hill Superintendent Bart Goering said his school board discussed joining the lawsuit, but eventually decided against it. “Everybody is cutting back and they just felt we shouldn’t go after money the state doesn’t have,” he said.

Gary George, assistant superintendent in the Olathe School District, said joining the lawsuit was never seriously discussed. However, he added that the district did benefit financially from the first lawsuit, which resulted in a big influx of dollars for the district.

Although the Olathe district has been forced to cut millions of dollars from its budget, George said the financial pain would have been worse without measures passed by lawmakers in response to the first lawsuit.

One such measure in the 2005 law — known as the cost-of-living section — has allowed Johnson County schools to receive more local tax dollars than many other Kansas districts.