Although voters in seven Clark County school districts — and other districts throughout the state — will decide on funding requests next month, the Legislature still has a duty to address school funding this year.
Ballots are due Feb. 11 to determine the fate of levies and bonds in the Vancouver, Evergreen, Battle Ground, Ridgefield, Hockinson, La Center and Mount Pleasant districts. The requests from school boards include a variety of bonds and levies, which can be confusing for voters.
As Columbian reporter Brianna Murschel explains: “Levies require a simple majority to pass and are one to six years in length. Bonds are repaid with property taxes over as many as 40 years and must be approved by a 60 percent vote. Districts are seeking two kinds of levies. Educational programs and operations levies fund teachers, support staff, supplies and materials, or services that the state only partially funds. Technology, safety and capital levies pay for renovations along with technology and safety enhancements.”
Most of the levies are replacement levies rather than new taxes. They would take the place of levies that are expiring at the end of this year.
While voters must assess the needs of their particular districts, the slate of ballot measures reflects a statewide issue.
In 2012, the state Supreme Court ruled in McCleary v. Washington that the Legislature was not living up to its constitutionally mandated “paramount duty” of fully funding public education. The primary issue was that a shortage of state funding left districts overly reliant on local school levies, which created inherent inequities between districts.
In 2018, lawmakers finally approved a plan that met the court’s dictates by adding billions of dollars in state funding. But disparities have grown since then, and officials warn of the possibility of another lawsuit.
In delivering his annual State of Education address this month, State Superintendent Chris Reykdal said: “Our Supreme Court said it’s an ongoing question — it’s not that you reach funding and you’re done. It’s that you also have to maintain it.” He added, “It’s our moment now, or we’re going to find districts in serious distress.”
According to Reykdal, education funding made up approximately half of the state’s budget for the 2017-19 biennium; but in the most recent two-year budget, education accounts for 44 percent.
That decline adds to long-standing concerns. Since additional funding was approved seven years ago, school officials have warned that special education, in particular, is woefully underfunded.
The question, of course, is what to do about it. For the first time in years, the state is facing a revenue shortage — or a problem with excess spending, depending upon how you look at it — and budget negotiations promise to be particularly tense this year in Olympia.
Reykdal joined former Gov. Jay Inslee in calling for new revenue streams for state government, including a wealth tax. New Gov. Bob Ferguson opposes the proposal and instead is focusing on potential spending cuts.
Indeed, lawmakers should determine spending priorities and focus on efficiencies before reflexively increasing taxes. And public education should be atop the list of those priorities. Reykdal said: “I understand people talk about ‘This is a tough year.’ Every year is a tough year. We do not want to find ourselves back in court.”
In other words, as voters weigh in on local levies in the coming weeks, it will not mark the end of discussion this year about education funding in Washington.
