Short of Funds, Texas Eyes School Reserves
Pressed on using the Rainy Day Fund to help close of the state’s massive budget shortfall and avoid dramatic cuts, particularly to school funding, Gov. Rick Perry earlier this month pointed to another source of money he believes should be tapped first: the reserves held by many Texas school districts.
“It's about $12 billion in reserve accounts in our independent school districts, so should the state spend their Rainy Day Fund before those are accessed?” Perry said. “It's a good debate to have. My answer is no, I don't think so."
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Comments (8)
elvin stanley
i think we should cut all financial strings with the fed. gov. we don't need them --they do however need us. our business is just that --our business..let the states govern themselves..no more fed strings telling us what and how we can do..we can do it just fine..
Karen Cummings
Yes, we really should cut all financial strings to the federal govt. ROTFL
Federal disasters such as Katrina
Border patrol enforcement
Fort Hood and other military bases will have to leave Texas
NASA
Federal Farm subsidies
Big Oil subsidies
Federal Grants and Scholarships
Shall I continue?
Rudy Gonzales
Any time Tricky Ricky eyes money, he fixates on the source rather than attack the budget deficit that has come about from his stint in the Governor's office. A career politician with no real world experience would bankrupt the local school districts and universities in Texas rather than make his 2% benefactors belly up to the tax office. Texas and America has been in decline due to billion dollar corporation subsidies while the richest 1% own 34% of total US wealth. America is in decline due to 100 of 1% of the population average 27 Million dollars per household per year while the top 2% get tax breaks at the expense of the US taxpayer. The rich get richer at the expense of the lower 98% due to efforts of the Republican party. - Source Huffington Post. This is what you get when one party dominates the legislation process and one career Governor with no real world experience. Texas has lagged other states in removing this law from the books and Texans have suffered. Our career governor and the one party legislature have tied the hands of rural hospitals and physicians.
Under one party rule in Texans have fared poorly in other areas and we cannot afford to keep letting Austin tie our hands. If we had "Initiative and Referendum" here in Texas, WE could get things done without Perry or the Legislature. WE could do what needs to be done and even pass legislation to limit career politicians like Perry to two terms.
Mary Lynn VanZandt Neill via Texas Tribune on Facebook
TWO WORDS: WHY NOT???
Kim Thompson
This is just a shiny object thrown out by politicians to distract people from the actual problem at hand. Any raids on rainy day funds -whether it's the state's fund or the ISD's is merely a band-aid to a much larger problem. Let's assume we raid all of the funds and close the hole in this budget. Guess what? We'll be right back here discussing the education budget crisis next biennium. Why? STRUCTURAL TAX DEFICIT. That's what Slick Rick Perry created in 2006 the last time he "fixed" the school finance system. Even Standard & Poors has called him out saying that it has to be balanced.
What voters should demand is a complete over-haul of school funding mechanisms. The business franchise tax didn't work. Find a new way - it's time for the legislature to clean up the mess they made.
Alan Womack via Texas Tribune on Facebook
one word .WHY???
KJ Lowry
I think that the fake budget-slashing Republicans in Austin and around the country are purposely trying to destroy the public schools! Sounds crazy, right? They want the public to be so outraged at the poor education available in the public schools that they will allow the plutocrats and right wingnuts their "vouchers" for private prep and religious schools at the taxpayers expense.
Mike Callen
Yet another ignorant comment from our sound bite governor.