(Springfield) …The A+ Illinois campaign expressed
concern over the inadequacy of Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s proposals to improve
education and the economic climate in Illinois, two of his key priorities
outlined in his State of the State address today. In his address, Gov.
Blagojevich touted investments he has made in public education and his plans to
create jobs and keep and attract businesses to Illinois, including reducing the
cost of health insurance and increasing international
trade.
With
businesses in
Illinois
already ailing from fee increases
over the past two years, the governor’s proposed measures overlook two
components critical to creating an attractive business climate: relieving
property owners from skyrocketing property taxes, a significant and spiraling
fixed cost for business owners; and adequately funding K-12 education to ensure
a high-quality workforce exists to support the state’s businesses. Indeed, a
2002 Illinois Chamber of Commerce report noted that the business community cites
education as the most important focus for the state’s economic development
efforts.
Yet in his address, Blagojevich painted a rosy picture of state investment
in
Illinois’
public education system – despite the fact that over 80 percent of school
districts are in the red.
The
administration continues to trumpet recent education funding increases,
including raising the state’s per-pupil guaranteed funding by $154 in its FY2005
budget – though the increase amounted to a mere $2 more than the cost of
inflation for the year, based on the Consumer Price Index data issued by the
U.S. Bureau of Economic Impact.
What’s more, the governor proudly noted that he and state legislators have
improved
Illinois’
education system “without asking the people to bail us out by paying more in
income taxes and sales taxes.” However, the state’s refusal to foot its share of
the bill for public education has stuck thousands of hard-working
Illinois
families with
skyrocketing property tax bills, as school districts in record numbers look to
property owners to shoulder what is rightfully the state’s burden.
And
in dozens of communities across the state, voters – already strapped with an
increasing property tax burden – have refused to approve school-funding
referenda, leaving schools to struggle to afford even the most basic
necessities. As teaching positions and core programs are cut, class sizes are
expanding, and the student achievement gap is growing.
A
growing number of state leaders are focusing the spotlight on the crisis in
schools and the state’s fiscal health.
Senate President Emil Jones (D-Chicago) recently called for a bipartisan
effort to change the school-funding system in order to address “terrible,
outrageous” inequities. And House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Chicago) is holding
statewide hearings on the state’s overall fiscal crisis.
The time has come for the governor – who proudly noted
that the state has “made our schools … more accountable” – to join these
discussions and ensure that accountability for Illinois’ public schools also
includes accountability for their fiscal well-being. Comprehensive reforms to
the state’s education-funding and tax systems are needed now to ensure that
public education is funded fairly and adequately, every year. All revenue
options must be on the table in these policy discussions. Nothing is more important to the future well-being
of the state’s two million schoolchildren or its economic vitality than fixing
Illinois broken
school-funding
system now.
A+ Illinois is a campaign of more than 100 organizations
and thousands of individuals across the state committed to real reform in the
quality and funding of public education for all Illinois children. Partner
organizations include AFSCME Council 31, Center for Tax and Budget
Accountability, Chicago Urban League, Illinois Education Association, Illinois
Farm Bureau, Metropolitan Planning Council, Tax Policy Forum and Voices for
Illinois Children. Visit www.aplusillinois.org for more
information.