May 26, 2011
With the bid deadline past, Kentucky has moved closer to turning mo st of its Medicaid program over to outside managed care organizations — a move the state hopes will improve efficiency and cut costs in the $6.5 billion-a-year health plan for the poor and disabled. Officials refused to identify any of the bidders who […]
May 26, 2011
Chris Christie’s 16-month campaign to control New Jersey spending has been rebuffed by the state’s highest court, which objected to school-aid reductions the Republican governor made to balance his first budget. The New Jersey Supreme Court, in a 3-2 decision yesterday, ordered Christie to direct $500 million to the state’s poorest school districts for the […]
May 26, 2011
Nine states that were also-rans in last year’s Race to the Top school improvement competition will get another chance, the Obama administration announced on Wednesday, though this time $200 million will be up for grabs, compared with $4 billion awarded last year. An additional $500 million will be devoted to a parallel competition among all […]
May 26, 2011
Most Americans oppose the House Republicans’ plan to overhaul and slash funding of Medicaid, the state-federal program that covers 56 million low-income people, according to a poll being released today. About 60 percent of Americans want Congress to keep Medicaid in its current form with the federal government guaranteeing coverage and setting minimum benefits for […]
May 25, 2011
House’s failure to pass critical bill could land legislators in special session, legislators continue to cut millions in health care for poor women and financial aid would be cut from 41,000 students. House is in at 9. Senate is in at 8 for local. What do you know? The House waited until almost the last […]
May 25, 2011
CONCORD — The Mt. Diablo school board on Tuesday expects t o discuss budget cuts, look at how well it is educating English-language learners and appoint two new high school principals. “I think right now is the time to be conservative with our budget so we can pay our bills,” board President Gary Eberhart said […]
May 25, 2011
May 25, 2011
Advocates for both public and private schools in New Orleans are engaged in a furious lobbying effort at the state Capitol this week, pushing lawmakers to restore education financing that has been stripped from Gov. Bobby Jindal’s pr oposed budget. As is, the spending plan taking shape in Baton Rouge would slice out part of […]
May 25, 2011
Twenty-one nurses working in Milwaukee Public Schools might lose their jobs if the proposed district budget is approved this summer, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports. In his biennial state budget, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker eliminated a $1.5 million state grant that funded the district’s 21 full-time nursing positions. MPS does not have the money to cover […]
May 23, 2011
The governor announced last week that school districts will have the opportunity to receive $200 of the $300 per pupil budget cut back, but the money comes with strings attached. To get all of that funding school districts must meet what the Governor calls best financial practices. “There’s 150-million-dollars into best practice,” says Governor Snyder. […]