Air Date:02/08/2011
By Travis Berg and Jackelyn SeverinThe state Senate killed a bill giving funding for Kindergarten on an hourly basis. Currently the state pays the same rate for full and half day students. Senate Bill 72 pays funding to Kindergarten on how many hours the child is in school. The measure was amended to not take effect for another year. Republican Senator Al Novstrup of Aberdeen supports the bill. He says in a time of plenty it's okay to give schools this extra funding, but not when we're facing a budget shortfall.Novstrup says, "You got to pay the bill you owe first. And then if there's money left over, then you can do extras like this one. This is an extra. This is not a basic of the budget. This is going above and beyond what's necessary."Opponents say this will be a cut on top of a cut, and lawmakers should put more faith into how local schools spend their money. They say S-B 72 doesn't account for learning and development that happens outside regular classroom hours. Senate Bill 72 was defeated by a 13 to 22 vote.
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