EMU professor: School enhancement millages are tough sell
Getting voters to approve a countywide enhancement millage is a hard job that requires a lot of work from local schools districts, an Eastern Michigan University professor says.
“The problem is we have donor districts. That’s what typically kills it. (Enhancement millages) are a hard sell. It’s not something that’s likely to pass without a lot of hard work from districts,” said William Price, a professor of leadership and counseling in the School of Education.
In so-called "donor districts," some of the money raised by taxing property owners isn't spent in their home districts - the money is funneled to other districts in the county. For instance, Ann Arbor property owners would pay $16 million toward the millage, but the school district would receive only $11 million of that.
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Related Stories • District spending a hot topic in Washtenaw County enhancement millage debate
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Price talked recently with AnnArbor.com about school funding. An edited transcript follows.
Q: Give us a little bit of history about enhancement millages for schools.
A: Enhancement millages began subsequent to Proposal A. When the state took away local control over millages, they got some flack. They gave school districts three years - 1994, 1995, 1996, to go to the voters with an enhancement millage of up to 3 mills, for up to three years. Some districts used the opportunity to buy technology. Some districts used the opportunity to ask for updating the school bus fleet.
Some went for 3 mills. Some went for 1 mill. Lots didn’t go at all.
After 1996, individual district couldn’t ask for enhancement millages, but the entire (intermediate school district) could. Its intent was to introduce a way to equalize funding, at least regionally.
Q: Why was the shift made in 1994 to Proposal A and state funding of education?
A: There were several problems, including a growing inequity in how much school districts had in funding. You had districts like Bloomfield Hills that got $10,300 per student and then Onaway that had $3,200. There were several proposals floating around the state. There were flaws in all of them. They all required the redistribution of wealth.
Q: How did Proposal A come into being law?
A: (U.S. Senator) Debbie Stabenow floated an idea that would repeal the school property tax. It passed. The legislature had to meet late into the year to come up with a way to replace it. On Christmas Eve, a plan was agreed to that would have called for increasing the state income tax, having a 12 mill tax on residential property (to fund schools) and another 12 mills on non-homestead property (to fund schools).
Proposal A was an alternative to that. Instead of increasing the income tax, the sale tax was increased from 4 percent to 6 percent and the 2 percent dedicated to schools. Property tax (for schools) was set at 6 mills and an additional 18 mills on non-homestead.
Q: After Proposal A passed, have there been any attempts to reform it?
A: There has been a lot of talk, but no real action.
David Jesse covers K-12 education for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at davidjesse@annarbor.com or 734-623-2534.
Comments
Tom Bower
Fri, Oct 30, 2009 : 7:26 p.m.
Public school academies offer small class sizes and a diverse student population. This is the fastest growing segment of public schools in Washtenaw County. Yet, these schools are excluded under current law from receiving any of the regional enhancement millage. When will the traditional general powers districts and the intermediate school district stop treating these students as second class citizens? Michigan Charter Schools Do More with Less Source: Michigan Association of Public School Academies http://www.charterschools.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=79&Itemid=44 Charters are doing more with less. 62% of the state's charter students are minorities, one of the highest ratios in the country and significantly above the state average of 26 percent. About 58% of Michigan charter students qualify for free- or reduced-price lunch. Charter schools receive a per-pupil funding of about $7,888. This is $1,198 less per student than all traditional schools statewide, and $2,576 less per student than the traditional district where the charter school is located. Charter total student funding is never more than what the local district gets. Charters are not allowed to levy millages or sell public bonds. In fact, many charters pay property taxes back to traditional districts. Michigan charters put their dollars in the classroom. Latest data from the National Center for Education Statistics shows 63% of all charter staff are in the classroom, directly helping children to learn. In contrast, the state average for all schools is 48% -- among the worst in the nation. According to the Michigan Dept of Education (MDE), charter school students in grades K-8 outperform students in similar traditional public school districts in 25 of 27 MEAP tests. Charter high school students have achieved an 86% graduation rate, 12% above similar traditional districts. According to the MDE, students in charter schools receive, on average, $1,778 less per year in combined state and local financial resources than students in host districts.
eagleman
Tue, Oct 27, 2009 : 7:51 p.m.
I have NOT been impressed with the quality of instruction that one receives as a public school. Teachers are one of the reasons why our public education system is failing.
Dr. I. Emsayin
Sun, Oct 25, 2009 : 10:32 a.m.
Is the hard work that the professor mentioned to educate the general public about the need for the millage now that the state has cut per pupil spending? It seems that what the taxpayers are being asked for is minimal compared to the losses in store. Only the very wealthy can afford to send their children to private schools to get the smaller class sizes that our residents will complain about once they see their children not receiving the attention they have come to expect. I have seen both systems, and I have been impressed the way that the public schools have created an egalitarian atmosphere in the schools while maintaining academics that reach each student.