Deomcrats say lawmakers should focus school funding formula

Air Date:02/16/2012

Democrat lawmakers say Governor Dennis Daugaard’s Investing in Teaching initiative distracts from the real issues involving school funding. Minority Lead Bernie Hunhoff says what lawmakers should be focusing on is funding the base formula for k-12 education. Governor Dennis Daugaard’s budget calls for a 2.3 percent increase in the base formula with additional 12 million dollars in one-time funds for fiscal year 2013. Hunhoff says this is a small increase that won’t make up for 52 million dollars in education cuts last year.

“I think everybody imagined that we would come back out here and address that issue. Number one issue in the state as far as I’m concerned. And we’ve paid no attention to it and yet the administration proposes a budget with all these new programs in it, new spending programs, and I think some of them have merit but first we’ve got to fund adequately the programs that we’ve already got especially when those programs are basic k-12 education in South Dakota,” says Hunhoff.

Republicans say the Investing in Teaching initiative will give schools an extra 15 million dollars by 2014. They say this is one of the biggest investments the state has seen in education.
 
By Jackelyn Severin

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