here's another republican screwing up the system. it's time to replace perdue too and elect someone with some since.
ATLANTA --- Proposed cuts to a program aimed at helping some school districts have angered lawmakers and could contribute to another round of budget friction between Gov. Sonny Perdue and legislative leaders.
Mr. Perdue's proposal would slice more than $30 million in state "equalization grants" that would otherwise go to school districts with lower property values. The cuts are in the budget for the next fiscal year, which starts July 1.
Essentially, the program gives extra state funds to the 134 school systems with the lowest per capita property values. Local education funds come largely from property taxes. The 46 districts with the highest property values don't receive the funding.
The governor's office says the proposal address equalization grants that go to some communities with higher personal incomes that aren't necessarily reflected in property values.
"One issue that has come to light ... is the need to apply an income factor to the current funding formula," press secretary Bert Brantley said in an e-mail.
"This is to ensure equalization funding is fairly distributed and portioned throughout the state. An income factor in the calculation would retain the concept of basing equalization grants on local wealth, and simply adds in median household income into the formula," he wrote.
Mr. Brantley was quick to point out that while the affected districts would receive less than they otherwise would have, none would dip below the actual amount of funding they're getting in the current fiscal year, which ends June 30.
But some lawmakers, particularly those from districts hit by the change, are steaming.
"Trust me: That's the governor's proposal, but it's got a long way to go before it gets through Appropriations," said Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Pooler, a member of the House Appropriations Committee. Effingham County would receive $8.5 million in equalization grants next year, down from the $9.4 million it would get without the income factor.
Education groups are also opposed to the cuts.
"Family income has absolutely nothing, nothing to do with equalization grants," said Herb Garrett, the executive director of the Georgia School Superintendents Association.
The change affects the districts of House Speaker Glenn Richardson, R-Hiram, and Appropriations Chairman Ben Harbin, R-Evans. Mr. Harbin's home of Columbia County would go from nearly $9.2 million in equalization grants to just less than $8 million.
Mr. Harbin said his committee was looking for a way to address the changes.
The problem could end up affecting every school system if the Legislature doesn't pass Mr. Perdue's proposal. That's because the Legislature can technically only shave money off the program.
Reach Brandon Larrabee at (678) 977-3709 or brandon.larrabee@morris.com.
AFFECTED DISTRICTS
A look at the 16 districts that would receive less equalization funding under Gov. Sonny Perdue's budget proposal for the coming fiscal year, which begins July 1, than they would otherwise be entitled to under the formula for the grants:
| DISTRICT | FORMULA (09) | PERDUE (09) | DIFFERENCE |
| Gwinnett | $32,942,170 | $18,887,424 | $14,054,746 |
| Paulding | $22,661,823 | $17,466,475 | $5,195,348 |
| Henry | $12,514,166 | $8,126,997 | $4,387,169 |
| Douglas | $12,394,529 | $10,152,689 | $2,241,840 |
| Columbia | $9,171,656 | $7,988,315 | $1,183,341 |
| Coweta | $3,754,229 | $2,845,333 | $908,896 |
| Effingham | $9,433,296 | $8,528,048 | $905,248 |
| Newton | $14,181,450 | $13,365,314 | $816,136 |
| Hall | $9,255,635 | $8,715,780 | $539,856 |
| Lee | $3,643,405 | $3,144,345 | $499,060 |
| Rockdale | $2,591,698 | $2,181,373 | $410,324 |
| Barrow | $6,097,653 | $5,726,043 | $371,610 |
| Bartow | $11,462,421 | $11,134,919 | $327,502 |
| Clayton | $26,822,317 | $26,655,440 | $166,877 |
| Pike | $1,457,854 | $1,391,305 | $66,549 |
| Jones | $2,915,884 | $2,892,858 | $23,026 |
Source: Governor's Office
Comments
here's another republican screwing up the system. it's time to replace perdue too and elect someone with some since.
Seems like a bold comment TENTBOYZ, where's you point of disagreement? This article only covers the pov of the districts not receiving as "big-a-piece" of the pie as they'd like to, not the ones who actually get the larger increase of redistributed wealth. This is a republican trying to act as "fair" as a liberal. (I think you meant sense)
He's been talking to Bush too much, he has to GO!
I can see your point PT, but never the less, you are talking about jobs here in this case in which are being eaten alive anyway, so now what for teachers? Do they take paycuts just because they are in a higher paid district?
Perdue has butchered the school system! I guess in another life time he was a butcher ! This is another way to cut again and force school systems to raise property taxes. People keep in mind if you cut one place you have to make that money up somewhere else. Who will end up paying is the slow dying middle class families. Perdue has cut, cut & cut the school system yet we have to find ways to educate our children on very little. NCLB is an unfunded mandate and a joke, yet someone comes up with all these bright ideas to educate our children with no funding or very little. Here is a example of what Perdue is doing; the jobs we work, management make decisions with little or if any input from the people doing the job. In fact they are clueless and are only concerned with output and cost savings at the expense of their employees and customers. If they only took the time to ask the people doing the job you would find out we know what it takes to get the job done and have some really cost savings and better ways of doing the job. The problem with asking us how should we be offering better services will never be asked from the people doing the job because we have the RIGHT answers. We know where the money needs to be spent and where we shouldn't spend money and a bit smarter than management in many cases. The sad part is we can't understand why our children are having problem learning and why teachers are frustrated. Has anyone asked them! Our teachers and children get very little support from the people who claim they care about our children and teachers. A fact many refuse to face is we rather spend money on a individual in prison than educate a child. Our children can't get medical care but one in prison gets better medical care than our children in some cases better care than one who has medical insurance. I wonder if they have a deductible? People in prison get 3 meals and a squat, yet many children may not eat or have a roof over their head. They have T.V.'s with cable, computers and books to read, yet our children have far less than a person in prison. So my friend you figure out where our priorities are! I bet if you really think about it our children are last on the list, an after thought for many!
In case you missed it Houston County, fat boys home county was not affected. Imagine that. Also remember he is the one who took away the spanish program grant from Columbia County last year. I guess he really has forgotten where his Republican buddies are from. I alsobet he did not touch the metro Atlanta County where his daughter is a teacher either. He is known in his home county for making sure they get everything he can give them before he leaves office. I also undestand he wants to move even more state offices out of Atlanta and down 75 to the National Faicrgrounds property which happens to be in Houston County. He moved the GSP office there the year after he was elected to a new 2 million dollar building. He is moving the DOC to forsyth at a cst of over 5 million in renovation cost. Theemployees will then use state cars and gas to drive rom Atlanta to Forsyth tp work each day. A REAL COST SAVINGS. ALSO he can't run again so he does not care what the people think anyway.
this is an online book : the underground history of american education. by john taylor gatto. the system is designed to fail many so that the order of things remain. many kids are expected to only be mindless non thinking overspending consumers wasting their money on things of no real value I.E. 200 dollar tennis shoes. wasting their time watching tv so they can learn what to consume. very good read here is the link:
http://www.rit.edu/~cma8660/mirror/www.johntaylorgatto.com/chapters/inde...
You have got to be kidding me! LaTwon, I glanced over the first 4 chapters of this ridiculous book and sat here with my mouth open! How dare anyone blame the school system for students or parents buying $200 tennis shoes! Get real! I wouldn't waste my time reading this book if it it jumped of a shelf and bit me!
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