By Fred Nolan, MREA Executive Director Both open enrollment and districts’ reliance on voter approved referendums are aspects of Minnesota’s education that have grown exponentially over the past 20 years. The Finance Working Group recommends a simplification to integrate these two systems and allow districts to receive voter approved referendum revenue based on the students they serve starting in FY … Read More
Map Shows Taxpayer Effort to Raise $1,000 Per Pupil
MREA released a map today that shows the taxpayer effort to raise the average operating revenue to $1,000 per pupil (RMCPU) in Minnesota. At a $1,000 voter approve operating referendum revenue per pupil, two-thirds of school districts’ taxpayers in the state are in the highest level of tax effort required. Nearly all of those districts are in rural Minnesota. A thumbnail … Read More
Map Shows Taypayer Effort to Raise $1,845 Per Pupil
MREA released a today showing the taxpayer effort to raise $1,845 in operating revenue per pupil (RMCPU) in Minnesota. At $1,845 voter approve operating referendum revenue, all the school districts that require above average taxpayer effort are rural Minnesota school districts. The $1,845 represents the current “cap” or maximum allowable referendum per resident pupil applicable to most Minnesota school districts. A … Read More
Legislature Back from Break with Battle Brewing
After taking a spring break last week, the 2013 legislature is about to pick up where they left off. With the policy deadlines behind us, the focus of the session now turns to the major finance committees. Over the next two weeks, these finance committees will work with the budget targets their leaders gave them to come up with omnibus … Read More
Simplifying Pupil Units and Funding Formulas
By Dr. Fred Nolan, MREA Executive Director One major complication in the Minnesota School finance system is the variety of student weightings. These evolved over years of adjustments to increase one grade level of students in relation to others to serve a particular need. The result is to question the premise that all students are equally valued in their education. … Read More
Levy Equalization: Purpose, History and Mechanics Uncovered
Equalization has taken center stage at the legislature for good reason. Minnesota’s Constitution (Article 13) states “it is the duty of the legislature to establish a general and uniform system of public schools… The legislature shall make such provisions by taxation or otherwise as will secure a thorough and efficient system of public schools throughout the state.” The 1993 Minnesota … Read More
Enhancement Revenue to “Un-ring the bell”
By Vernae Hasbargen, MREA lobbyist “I wish I could go back and un-ring the 2003 bell, because I would if I could” is how Skoe described Education Enhancement Revenue (EAR) to the K-12 Committee. What Senator Skoe is referring to is the tax reform agreed to during the final year of the Ventura administration. Ventura wanted to expand sales taxes … Read More
Big Picture Emerges: K-12 Top Priority
By Vernae Hasbargen As legislators finished up their work for an Easter break, their spending priorities reveal what could be the final outcome of the session. Both the House and Senate have chosen to spend $200 m more than the Governor on K-12 because they found his 1% and 3% increases for the next biennium were not enough. Both they … Read More
Present at the MREA Conference
The Minnesota Rural Education Association is looking for presenters for their 2013 annual conference Nov 17-19 willing to share an effective practice that provides high quality rural education and help MREA’s member districts improve the education of children across Minnesota. The deadline to submit a proposal is April 22. Learn more Submit a proposal.
House and Senate Release Budget Targets
The House and Senate released budget targets last week for all of their finance committees. In the House, the Education Finance committee received the largest target of any committee in the legislature. The House DFL leadership decided to give Chairman Paul Marquart $550 million to spend. Inside Both Plans By comparison, the Senate gave Chairman Chuck Wiger $336 million to … Read More