A Crossroads for Minnesota’s Public
Schools
Parents United for Public SchoolsCommitted to Quality public schools for
ALL children
A Crossroads for Public Education
in Minnesota
Parents United for Public Schools
…Committed to quality public schools for all Minnesota children
Education is the Largest Part of the State Budget
A Constitutional mandate
Section 1.”UNIFORM SYSTEM OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS. The stability of a republican form of government depending mainly upon the intelligence of the people, it is the duty of the legislature to establish a general and uniform system of public schools. The legislature shall make such provisions by taxation or otherwise as will secure a thorough and efficient system of public schools throughout the state.”
The Lion’s Share of District Funding
Per pupil formula (Set by State Legislature)
x AMCPU (Adjusted Marginal Cost Pupil Unit)
= District Operating Funds
Year Formula Allowance
General Increase
Actual “New Dollars”
Actual % Change
1993-94 $3,050 -- ---- 0.00%
1994-95 $3,150 $100 ----- 0.00%
1995-96 $3,205 $55 $55 1.75%
1996-97 $3,505 $300 ---- 0.00%
1997-98 $3,581 $76 $76 2.17%
1998-99 $3,530 ($51) ($49) -1.37%
1999-00 $3,740 $210 $150 4.25%
2000-01 $3,964 $224 $95 2.54%
2001-02 $4,068 $104 $104 2.62%
2002-03 $4,601 $533 $118 2.90%
2003-04 $4,601 ---- ----- 0.00%
2004-05 $4,601 ---- ------ 0.00%
2005-06 $4,785 $184 $184 4.00%
2006-07 $4,976 $191 $191 4.00%
2007-08 $5,075 $99 $99 2.00%
2008-09 $5,124 $49 $49 1.00%
Total $2074 $1072 1.61% annually
Per Pupil Formula Analysis
History of the per pupil formula
After the 2005 Legislative session
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
$4,500
$5,000
$5,500
$6,000
92-93 94-95 96-97 98-99 00-01 02-03 04-05 06-07
Cost Analysis Measure Inflation-Adjusted Change,
1996-2005
Fuel Oil 97.6%
Gasoline 44.6%
Educational Books and Supplies 32.0%
Energy (general) 31.2%
Medical Care
Source: Minnesota Department of Education; U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics
11.1%
Tax Reform in the 90’s
State policies reforming property tax Lowered taxes on commercial property Agricultural and recreational land removed from the
equation for school taxesThe 2001 General Education Buy Down The state picked up school costs once paid by local
property taxes Passed half of the legislation—the liability was accepted,
without a stated revenue stream to support it.
Requirements for public schools grew while revenue did not• Testing• Standards• Special education mandates• Transportation• English Language Learning• Health and safety mandates• Physical Education• HIV/AIDS Sex Education• Drug/Alcohol Abuse Education• Bus Safety• Title 1 programs• 100% Rule
Schools and Revenue in the 90’s
Increases in growth
Increases in expectations
Increases in cost
Income tax reductions
Property tax reductions
Business tax rate reductions
Schools
Revenue
How did schools survive?
Growth 100,000 new students in the 90’s
Cuts Spent fund balances down Passed Local Levies
School districts’ response
1990 47% of school districts in the state of Minnesota had levies in place
2000 that number rose to 88%
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
1989 2000
# of schools withlevies
In Minnesota, who are the students of the 21st
Century?
Population Change
Tom Gillaspy
378 2,374
12,904 11,912
-43,403
-15,835
-50000
-40000
-30000
-20000
-10000
0
10000
20000
Am Indian Asian Hispanic Black White Total
Ch
an
ge
En
roll
me
nt
20
00
-01
to
20
04
-05
Kids Count findings Children’s Defense
Fund
Most recent data shows:
About 1 in 10 MN children under 18 live in poverty Estimated 7,000 more children living below poverty
line than 5 years ago 68,000 uninsured children Greater participation in Food Support and Free and
Reduced School Lunches
Change In Minnesota School Enrollments 1999-00 to
2004-05 By Language Spoken At Home
Tom Gillaspy
-43,974
25,460
-18,514
-50000
-40000
-30000
-20000
-10000
0
10000
20000
30000
English Speaking
Total Non English
Total K-12 Students
Special Education Requirements1975 –”Individuals with Disabilities Education Act” (IDEA),
Public Law 105-17 Brought 1 million children who were previously kept at home
or in institutions into the public school system.
Federal government agreed to pay 40% of excess cost to educate these children. It has never provided 40%
• In 2004, Minnesota school districts reallocated $378 million meant for regular education instruction to provide state and federally mandated special education programs
• In 2005, the state auditor’s report on public school costs showed that the greatest increases in school budgets were for special education.
% of MN children rated “not yet” performing adequately at Kindergarten entrance Brookings Institute
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%0-$35,000
$35,001-$55,000
$55,001-$75,000
$75,001 ormore
Languageand literacy
Mathematical thinking
So…
More children qualifying for Free and Reduced Lunches (FRL)
More children needing English Language Learning services (ELL)
More children requiring Special Education services (SpEd)
100% rule for the first time in history
And the state response?
Programs shown to close the achievement gap have been cut child care eligibility early childhood education after school programs
English Language Learning services capped at 5 years From 2003 until 2007 the special education inflator was
abolished
Price of Government in Minnesota
John Gunyou17%
16%
15%
1992 2002 2006
The Price of Government is the State of Minnesota’s official measure and is factored as total revenue as a percentage of personal income.
So why
should any of this
matter to us?
Minnesota Future Labor Force Tom Gillaspy
0
150000
300000
450000
600000
1970-80 1980-90 1990-00 2000-10 2010-20 2020-30
Net Labor Force Growth
By 2020 65+ is Larger than K-12
By 2030 65+ Doubles Tom Gillaspy
0
200,000
400,000
600,000
800,000
1,000,000
1,200,000
1,400,000
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030
18-24
65+
5-17
Reduced tax revenues
Beginning in 2020, from this cohort we
can count on Less income tax revenue Less sales tax revenue Less ability to pay increased property tax Greater demand on the same tax dollar
School funding is needed to
Prepare ALL students for 2020 not 2008 Help students meet state and federal mandates. Provide for the economic security of a district
and state
It’s their future, but it’s our responsibility
Parents United
Working to engage concerned citizens in the conversation around public policy and its
effect on our public schools
www.parentsunited.org
Advocates for Minnesota’s Public Schools