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Tell Your Legislators: Do the right thing and do the job right

Legislators return to Topeka for a June 22 special session. "There is no time for name calling and finger pointing. School starts in less than eight weeks. We have 466,000 students whose education is riding on state lawmakers' ability to behave responsibly, to come back to Topeka and do the right thing in a timely fashion," KNEA President Christy Levings said. "Schools need solutions, not more shell games… no more robbing Peter to pay Paul."

She chided legislators "to forget petty differences, get back to work and get your job done. You have your directive. Honor the Kansas Constitution; honor the legal and legislative process. We need you to do your job right and we need you to do it now."

In January, the Supreme Court told state lawmakers that, based on the Kansas Constitution, they were to fund public schools based on actual costs. Legislators did not do that; instead basing funding on what would muster enough votes. So, the Supreme Court ruled that the $142 million plan state lawmakers championed was half as large as it needed to be and ordered legislators to pony up the additional money by July 1.

She is urging KNEA members, parents and the public to contact legislators and insist legislators do the right thing and do the job right. Many are concerned divisive politics will further complicate funding for the coming school year.

"School finance is a continuous process," Levings said. "Each session the Legislature must balance competing interests of maintaining state programs and spending tax dollars wisely. A decade of minimal funding increases has shortchanged Kansas kids, though, and the Kansas Legislature has created a glaring violation of its constitutional responsibility to fund a suitable education for all students. We can get this constitutional process back on track if reasonable people will work to find a solution that satisfies the mandate of the court."

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