Bipartisanship essential to solve school funding

An Ohio General Assembly analysis of a proposed constitutional amendment to address the inequities in the funding of public primary and secondary education says the plan would cost the state 600 million in the first year, and 1 billion a year after that.
But given that the linchpin of the initiative by Getting It Right for Ohio's Future is the elimination of local property taxes as a major source of revenue for school districts, widespread voter support can be expected.
The high rejection rate of school levy issues on the ballot makes it clear that continued dependence on this funding source is risky.
It is noteworthy that the advocates of the constitutional amendment -- the question would appear on the November general election ballot if the petitions are certified -- have not said where the state dollars would come from.
Jim Betts, spokesman for Getting It Right for Ohio's Future, told the Associated Press that some figures in the General Assembly's analysis are inflated, and that much of the added cost would be offset by increases in state tax revenue that naturally occur with inflation.
"If the public votes this particular proposal and adopts it, basically they're saying we want to make education a top priority. They're not saying they want to diminish the support for other services or activities. But they're also saying that since we made this a top priority, we're going to ask you, the General Assembly, to provide the resources necessary."
House Speaker Jon Husted, R-Kettering, suggested that a 2-cent per dollar sales tax or an increase in the personal income tax would be necessary to pay the tab.
Given this reality, you would think that Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland and the Republican controlled General Assembly would already have joined forces to come up with a funding formula for primary and secondary education that would pass constitutional muster. Such thinking would be fallacious.
High Court ruling
The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled that the current funding system with its dependence on property taxes is unconstitutional because it does not provide for a thorough and efficient education for all students in Ohio.
This week, partisan politics reared its ugly head when the GOP leaders in the Legislature seemed to be taunting the Democratic governor, who is in his second month in office.
Husted and others argued that Strickland won the November election by pledging to come up with a solution to the school funding problem. They said that Strickland should submit his proposal to the General Assembly as soon as possible and they have reserved House Bill 1 and Senate Bill 1 for him.
To his credit, the governor has refused to take the Republican bait. Instead, he is standing firm on his campaign pledge to conduct hearings throughout the state at which the stakeholders in Ohio's public education system would have the opportunity to express themselves as to how K-12 should be funded.
Strickland has invited the Republican leaders to join him. They have no choice but to demonstrate a willingness to cross party lines to find a solution to a problem that Ohioans want fixed.
Such bipartisanship would take the wind out of the constitutional amendment sails because the governor and the legislators would be able to rally the faithful of their respective parties.