Story originally printed in the La Crosse Tribune or online at www.lacrossetribune.com
Published - Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Doyle: Send budget now
TOWN OF CAMPBELL, Wis. — With Wisconsin students set to start classes Tuesday, Gov. Jim Doyle implored state legislators to pull all-nighters if necessary to finish what he called a late assignment: passing a state budget.
“It’s time to really intensify our effort,” he said. “This shouldn’t be two or three days a week.”
Doyle delivered the remarks at a press conference Tuesday at Summit Elementary School, flanked by superintendents from La Crosse, Holmen, Onalaska and West Salem. He said Wisconsin is the only state in the country without a passed budget and the consequences for schools could be dire if it drags on through the fall.
“Districts will be faced with the choice of shifting the burden to property taxpayers or cutting programs,” he said.
State law requires the Department of Public Instruction to announce the amount of state aid districts will receive by Oct. 15. A state budget must be in place at least a few weeks in advance to allow time for number-crunching.
If the budget isn’t ready in time, state aid will default to 2006-07 numbers, meaning about $80 million less in state K-12 aid than the governor proposed in his 2007-09 budget.
La Crosse Superintendent Jerry Kember said the amended numbers would force the district to cut $463,000 in the first year and $963,000 in the second year. The savings mostly would come through staff layoffs, he said.
“That would mean fewer programs and opportunities for students,” he said. Specifically, he said it likely would mean bigger class sizes and the potential elimination of SAGE, a state program that guarantees 15 or fewer students in all kindergarten through third-grade classes.
Onalaska Superintendent John Burnett said the budget stalemate could have “devastating” effects on schools in the region. He’s already strained by trying to put together a budget for this school year without knowing what the state will provide, he said.
“We need to know how much money is going to be there when students arrive next Tuesday,” he said.
Dan Simmons can be reached at (608) 791-8217 or dsimmons@lacrossetribune.com.
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