Education gets increases in proposed budget

Highlights of the $1.76 billion earmarked for education over the next two years:

-PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Allocates $1.12 billion, or about 35 percent of all state funds, for elementary and secondary schools. Gov. Kenny Guinn says that's the highest percentage of funding for K-12 programs in 10 years.

-HIGHER ED: Allocates $608.6 million, or 19.2 percent, on community colleges and two state universities.

-PER PUPIL DOLLARS: Spending per pupil in K-12 classrooms would jump from $3,812 this year to $4,291 in 2000, and increase again in 2001 to $4,285. Part of the increase is caused by rolling in class-size reduction funds, previously kept separate, into this category.

-MILLENIUM SCHOLARSHIPS: Guinn proposes spending millions of dollars from a national tobacco settlement for a new scholarship program. Scholarships would be up to $2,500 a year for a university student.

-STATE LIBRARY: Cuts spending to $6 million from $7 million for the Nevada State Library.

-HANDICAPPED: Cuts funding for education of handicapped persons to $797,892 from $2.5 million.

-CAREERS: Eliminates funding for Schools to Careers program, currently allotted $4 million.

-PROFICIENCY: Cuts funding in half for proficiency testing, to $2.3 million from $5.4 million. But Guinn said he has an education accountability plan that includes remediation programs for schools.

-LAW SCHOOL: Earmarks $11.5 million for the UNLV law school.

-CHARTER SCHOOLS: Guinn proposes removing a cap on the number of charter schools that can be formed in Nevada, and simplifying the process of establishing such schools.

archive