Who should pay?
Published April 27, 2014
Editorial by Greensboro News-Recod, April 27, 2014.
North Carolina school systems are asking local taxpayers for more support. County commissioners, or voters, will decide yes or no.
Guilford County Superintendent Maurice “Mo” Green wants commissioners to approve a $20 million increase in operating funds for the next school year. That’s as much as the district has requested over the past four years, but it’s gotten less than $2 million in that time. Green says schools can’t keep waiting.
Last week, the Wake County school board voted to seek $40 million more from commissioners. Much of that money would fund a 3.5 percent pay hike for teachers. Superintendent Jim Merrill — alarmed by a rising number of mid-year teacher resignations — set a goal of reaching the national average in teacher salaries by 2020. He can’t rely on the state to get there.
In conservative Davidson County, meanwhile, residents are voting on a proposed quarter-cent rise in the local sales tax to fund school construction. The Lexington Area Chamber of Commerce endorsed the effort.
North Carolina’s constitution directs the General Assembly to “provide by taxation and otherwise for a general and uniform system of free public schools.” Local governments are allowed to supplement state funds, but the primary responsibility lies with the state. Yet, after passing a lean budget for education last year, the N.C. House Republican Caucus advised cities and counties to put up more of their own money if they think school funding should be increased or teachers should be paid more.
The legislature cut taxes at the state level, mostly for the benefit of corporations and individuals in the highest tax bracket. Now, a state revenue shortfall indicates that schools and teachers will be disappointed again.
Green’s proposed budget estimates that state allocations will drop to 60 percent of Guilford County Schools’ total funding next year. Local money will account for 33 percent, with federal appropriations paying the rest. Despite the constitutional mandate, the state is gradually handing off its responsibility.
This weakens a “general and uniform system.” Not every county can afford to make up for state cuts with local increases. It’s questionable whether Guilford commissioners will agree to such a large requested increase in local school funding. And Guilford is a relatively wealthy county. Many others will have no choice but to watch their schools deteriorate without the means to patch budget holes. Poorer schools lead to further declines in local economies.
What if Wake County does raise salaries for its teachers to the national average? They’ll earn $5,000 to $10,000 more than teachers in other North Carolina counties, giving Wake schools a huge advantage in recruiting the best teachers from anywhere in the state — with a detrimental impact on other districts and their students.
It’s already difficult for many school districts to provide equal opportunities for their students — magnet schools, Advanced Placement courses, highly qualified teachers and modern, well-equipped classrooms. If the legislature takes the attitude that local governments should fill in growing funding gaps, some counties may raise their own taxes to do it. Others, perhaps most, will fall further behind.
