Sunday, June 9, 2019 | 2 a.m.
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Nevada’s public schools, particularly those in the Las Vegas Valley, came out of the 2019 legislative session with several reasons to celebrate. But unfortunately, they also emerged with a cause for concern that post-session partisan politics could blunt some of their gains.
On the positive side, state lawmakers increased public education funding in several specific areas — for school security, teacher raises and a solid boost in per-pupil funding. They also updated the state’s school funding formula in a way that will help provide fair funding to schools with proportionally large populations of English-language learners, students who are at-risk financially and students with disabilities.
These were major steps forward, and the lawmakers who supported them should be commended.
But on another front, the actions of Republican legislators could lead to a step back for K-12 schools. Should those lawmakers follow through with a threat to sue over a payroll tax extension, a $98 million portion of the additional funding for school safety and teacher salaries would be at risk.
That’s out of line. Nevada families deserve better, especially given the ticky-tack nature of the GOP’s dispute.
At issue is whether it was legal to pass the extension by less than a two-thirds majority. The Legislative Counsel Bureau told proponents that a simple majority was sufficient, but that wasn’t good enough for the Republicans.
Insistent that the money could be found on a one-time basis elsewhere, and ignoring that the extension would provide a much-needed ongoing source of funding, they dug in their heels. And after the bill failed to clear the state Senate by a two-thirds majority — it advanced 13-8 on a party line vote — they vowed to sue. (The extension drew a two-thirds vote in the Assembly, where Democrats held a supermajority.)
So here we are, with the GOP poised to disrupt a measure that would make our children safer and provide them with a stronger educational experience.
In the Clark County School District, the threat of such a disruption looms especially large. Although CCSD benefited from much of the Legislature’s actions, including coming away with funding for teacher pay raises, it announced Tuesday that it would still face a budget deficit of $17 million to $18 million. That revelation led unionized teachers to announce they were poised to strike if budget cuts hit the classroom level.
Superintendent Jesus Jara said he was optimistic that the budget could be adjusted so that any cuts wouldn’t be felt in the classroom, but the last thing CCSD needs now is for the payroll tax funding to be yanked away.
In discussing the issue, Gov. Steve Sisolak spoke for many Nevadans when he questioned the Republicans’ priorities.
“It’s difficult for me to believe that people are going to want to fight against school safety and against students in our classrooms, and that’s what we’re talking about here,” he said.
Sisolak said he was confident the proponents would prevail. But in an ideal world, the GOP would put Nevada children’s needs ahead of the party’s political interests and let the extension go through.
Either way, the dispute marred what had overall been a positive session for public schools. Here are a few of the improvements:
• Per-pupil funding was boosted to $10,227 in the first year of the biennium ($878 above the current level, which is fifth-worst in the nation) and $10,319 in the second ($970 above).
• The per-pupil increase, along with a portion of the payroll tax revenue, will go toward providing a 3% cost-of-living adjustment and a 2% merit increase for teachers over the biennium.
• Lawmakers approved $62 million in funding for school safety, including for equipment and design upgrades, and hiring of counselors and other staff.
• The new funding formula would distribute per-pupil funds on a weighted basis — English-language learners, at-risk students and those with physical or learning disabilities would get a larger proportion of state funds than their peers. The formula, which is designed to cover schools’ costs in providing extra services to those students, was a long-awaited replacement for the state’s circa-1967 version.
•The Legislature authorized counties to increase sales taxes by one quarter of 1 cent per dollar toward improving education, addressing homelessness and increasing the availability of affordable housing.
Going into the session, Sisolak and the Legislature’s Democratic leadership vowed to make it a top priority to improve the state’s schools. They largely succeeded. Now, Republicans need to get on board.
