Consensus for Change Emerges
By a vote of 110 to 1, the Illinois House of Representatives today passed a bill raising the minimum per-pupil spending level in what reformers call the most important school funding bill since the 1997 special session. The bill will raise the foundation level from $4,425 to $4,600. The foundation level is the amount of school funding that the state guarantees for each student in the state. HB 3050 is co-sponsored by reps. Art Turner (D-Chicago) and Jerry Mitchell (R-Sterling).
The bill brings education funding reform back to the forefront of debate in the General Assembly and in the public. "HB 3050 moves us closer to the level of resources necessary to provide a quality education for all of Illinois' children," says Rep. Turner.
Network 21: Quality Schools and Stronger Communities had sought a $4,700 foundation level, but ultimately supported an amended version at $4,600 because the bill marks a step in the right direction. The amended bill also enhances state aid to districts with significant numbers of poverty-level children. Additionally, it calls for a more generous method of computing school attendance figures for state aid purposes. Both are reforms sought by Network 21.
Research conducted by Network 21 found that fiscally efficient and high performance school districts in Illinois spend between $5,000 and $5,500 per pupil on basic education expenses.
"Raising the foundation level closer to that figure is part of a multi-year plan to reach the level of funding needed for quality schools in Illinois," said William Burns, education and tax policy manager for the Metropolitan Planning Council and spokesman for Network 21. Network 21 has called for increased funding and quality reforms to improve public education for all children in Illinois.
"The successful passage of this bill sends a strong signal that there is a growing consensus that we have unfinished business on school funding issues," added Rep. Mitchell. "I am pleased to work with groups like Network 21 who have built consensus with business leaders, teachers, farmers and civil rights advocates on reform."
A $4,600 foundation level will reduce disparities between school districts across the state by raising the floor of per-pupil expenditures. The increased level will reduce the number of districts in the "hold harmless" category and cut hold harmless payments.
The anticipated cost of raising the foundation level, along with the other changes, is $270 million for fiscal year 2002, which can be paid for through natural revenue growth and the reallocation of a minimum amount of general revenue funds to elementary and secondary education.
The bill now heads to the Illinois Senate, where it will compete with a bill that would raise the foundation level by a lesser amount — $4,560, as recommended earlier this year by the State Board of Education.
"There is a sense in the Senate that Illinois' historic school funding problems have not been resolved," Burns added. "We will work with senators on both sides of the aisle and from each region in the state to continue this conversation and work toward funding a higher foundation level for the 2001-2002 school year."
Network 21 was formed earlier this year by representatives of business, education, labor and civil rights groups to develop and achieve a consensus-based plan to improve education for all Illinois children.