2005-06 shaping up to be another tough year 

The governor’s broken promises on education funding and special election initiatives are the major threats to the health of public education this year, CSBA Executive Director Scott P. Plotkin told participants at the Back-to-School conference in Sacramento on Sept. 15.

Because school districts did not receive the level of funding they expected under the governor’s agreement and guaranteed under Proposition 98 this year, a number have experienced fiscal difficulties. A good number have received a ‘qualified’ or negative approval of their budget because revenues are falling short of expenses, said Plotkin, who opened the conference with his much-anticipated “Top 10 Issues” for 2005. “There’s actually a reason for all this, and it’s not because school boards and superintendents are making bad decisions,” he said. “It’s because we are not getting the money we are entitled to, regardless of the fact that Proposition 98 is supposed to provide a minimum funding guarantee.”

Hitting the highlights of a list that included the broken budget agreement and the California Teachers Association’s ensuing lawsuit, special election initiatives, CSBA’s efforts to raise public awareness about the need for adequate school funding, developments with No Child Left Behind, the achievement gap, reform of curriculum and school structure, universal preschool, school district governance and health care costs, Plotkin set the stage for the day’s sessions, which elaborated on most of those topics. Overall, Plotkin said, “it’s been a very challenging year and next year looks like it won’t be too much better. This has been one of those years where we’ve had to stay at a fever pitch just to stay ahead of the game.”

The conference featured informative sessions to update board members, superintendents and other school district participants about key issues for the new school year. CSBA Assistant Executive Director Rick Pratt reviewed what schools actually received in the 2005-06 state budget. The governor’s claim that schools received an increase in funding this year is misleading, Pratt said, because his calculations include a shift of property tax dollars not normally counted in Proposition 98 funding. “We may be keeping pace with what we did last year,” Pratt said, “but we’re still below where we were four years ago.” Actually, Proposition 98 per-pupil funding is 3.22 percent below what it was in 2000-01, adjusted for inflation, he said.

A lawsuit filed against the governor for failing to keep an agreement with the education community to hold cuts to $2 billion fails to name legislators, although they ratified the agreement in state law. The lawsuit, filed Aug. 8 by the California Teachers Association and state Superintendent Jack O’Connell, asks only that the court order the state to calculate the minimum guarantee for 2004-05 and 2005-06 at the full amount calculated by Proposition 98, minus the $2 billion – not that it actually restore an estimated $3.1 billion for the two years to school budgets, Pratt explained. Even if the petitioners win the case, he said, it will likely be years before schools see that money restored to their budgets.

The initiatives sponsored by the governor on the Nov. 8 special election are showing poorly in the polls, Pratt said, with just 49 percent of all likely voters polled in August saying they support Proposition 74, the “Put the Kids First Act,” which would extend the probationary period for teachers from two to five years and create a state definition for the “unsatisfactory performance” that could lead to a teacher’s dismissal – a change that would limit school districts’ discretion in defining that performance locally and could further complicate collective bargaining agreements.

Plotkin explained the problem with altering delicate labor laws through the initiative process. “If Proposition 74 had come to [a legislative] committee and the author had stated his intent, he would have been told this would not work,” said Plotkin, who served five years as chief consultant for the Senate Education Committee. As much as CSBA favors extending the probationary period for teachers, he said, because initiatives cannot be amended, Proposition 74 was considered too flawed by CSBA’s Delegate Assembly to merit its support in May.

The movement to provide preschool for all California children is gaining momentum with the circulation of the “Preschool for All Act,” initiated by actor and director Rob Reiner. Samantha Tran, CSBA senior research and policy consultant, reviewed key provisions of the act, which is intended for the June 2006 ballot. Independent of the initiative, CSBA has prepared an online resource and policy guide for districts interested in expanding access to preschool, available at.

Legislative Advocate Phillip Escamilla reviewed the recent reauthorization of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. CSBA sponsored a bill to bring California law regarding special education in line with federal requirements, but it was held in favor of AB 1662 by San Jose Democrat Sally Lieber, which the governor is expected to sign. The CSBA-sponsored bill, Assembly Bill 1092, by Lynn Daucher, R-Brea, can still be used to clean up conformity issues between the state and federal laws.

An update of legal issues by Richard Hamilton, Director of the Education Legal Alliance and CSBA Associate General Counsel, included the admonition to school boards to prepare for facilities requests from charter schools. A review of district responsibilities is available in the July issue of California School News.

School board members and superintendents at the conference received copies of the newest edition of the comprehensive guide, “Student Wellness: A Healthy Food and Physical Activity Policy Resource Guide,” produced by CSBA and California Project LEAN. CSBA Legislative Advocate Debra Brown and Victoria Berends, Project LEAN Marketing Manager, described the most recent developments in school wellness legislation and policy.

Holly Jacobson, CSBA Assistant Executive Director, Policy Analysis and Continuing Education, and Senior Legislative Advocate Erika Hoffman briefed attendees on high school reform, accountability and the latest news on requirements associated with the Williams Settlement.