State Representative David Bly, District 25B

According to Bud Heidgerken, Republican Rep. from Freeport, Rep. Greiling's e-12 education Bill was the best education bill he had ever seen.  The Governor didn't agree.  We even came up with some good plans for how to pay for it.  Again he didn't agree.   The Governor never would agree to a budget target and would not negotiate to an agreement.  He preferred to have a moving target and hold the option to veto what ever was sent him.  In my opinion the Governor had no interest in bargaining in good faith and has his gaze so firmly fixed on higher office he’s not interested in the well being of his own State.

As I've gone through this process I have thought continually about another Governor.  A Governor I met at a dinner in the mansion in the late 1980s and Rudy Perpich asked me what I did and I was proud to say that I worked in an Alternative High School that was enhanced by legislation he had signed into law.  

He said he was glad I was doing that kind of work paused and put his hand on my shoulder, he looked down as if studying something that wasn't there and said, "You know I know what it means to be a child and go to bed hungry and there is not a night that goes by that I don't think of those children in Minnesota who go to bed hungry.  I know my work as governor is all about creating a Minnesota where that doesn't happen, maybe I won't succeed but I work everyday for that goal, and I know that investing in education at all levels and in as many ways as we can is the way we do that."

I miss that Governor and the things that he believed in, the things he wanted to invest in, for all Minnesotans not just a few.  Not just for the students who were already doing well.  But all students at all levels, early childhood, k12, and post secondary, because in the end it is the people who are the wealth of our state.  

I ran for office because I want to invest in the future of our state and I believe investing in education is the most important investment we can make, which is why I find this compromise bill although still a good bill inadequate.  

In talking with two of the Superintendents in my district they report that it was significant that for the first time the legislature recognized the importance of making good on the promise to cover Special Education costs.  What some call cross subsidy – making sure the state pays its share of Special Education moves us in the right direction toward making struggling school districts whole.  It is simply wrong to have mandates that government is not willing to fund.  That said it is unfortunate when we committed to make gains there it meant that there was not enough money to increase the formula as much as we would have liked.  

Hopefully there will be some funds next year to accomplish this.  Because although they will get by there will be little money to bring down class sizes and restore any programs or rehire staff.  Another important consideration is that this bill does not rely on property tax increase to bring the full amount to districts as the past school budget increase agreement did.   Unfortunately the Governor’s veto of our earlier Tax Bill would have helped schools and provided property tax relief with buy downs of school levies.

Here are some of the provisions of the bill:

K-12 AND EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
- Total new E-12 funding: $794 million.   

- Special education:  $329 million to help reduce the cross-subsidy, which will free up money for general education needs.

- Basic funding formula: The formula will increase 2% in fiscal year 2008 to $5,075 per pupil; and 1% in 2009 to $5,124. (Again we will see what we can do to help with the second year of the biennium.)

- All-day kindergarten: $32.54 million for a down payment on statewide, voluntary all-day kindergarten to help close the achievement gap.

- Early childhood programs: Restoration of budget cuts from previous years for ECFE, Head Start, and School Readiness to get kids ready for kindergarten. (This was the bill I introduced early in the session HF 5.  I was helped by local leaders and educators in getting this bill through committee.)  

- Safe school levy: The levy was increased $3 to help keep students safe at school.  Permitted uses of the levy expanded to include voluntary opt-in suicide prevention tools, licensed school counselors, school nurses, school social workers, school psychologists, and alcohol and chemical dependency counselors.   

- Gifted and talented: Increased Gifted and Talented funding from $9 per pupil unit to $12 per pupil unit for FY 2008 and later.  For 2008-09, this results in an increase of $5,407,000. 

- World languages:  $500,000 appropriated to create a pilot program to award five world languages grants to school districts and sites to develop and implement world languages programs, and enhance existing programs.

- Library funding: Libraries across the state supported by providing an increase of 34.7% over the next two years to make up for years of neglect.  

- Minnesota State High School League: The MSHSL rule that imposes one-year of ineligibility for varsity athletes who change schools without a change of residence was not overturned.