OFFICIALS STILL UNCERTAIN ON SCHOOL FUNDS

Following approval Friday of Missouri's sweeping change to school funding, school officials throughout the state were attempting to decipher the 139 pages of legislation.

Few people, it seems, have a clear understanding of all elements of the bill, which would change the way Missouri funds its 538 school districts.

Initially, it looks as though most local schools would be winners, to varying degrees, with the new formula.

However, taxpayers in many districts would likely see an increase in their rates. Districts must set their minimum levy for operating expenses to $2.75 per $100 assessed valuation.

In Missouri, 295 of 538 districts would need to raise property tax hikes a total of $38 million statewide.

Scott City Superintendent Bob Brison spent most of last week trying to sort out what the new bill would mean for school districts.

"There is a whole lot of confusion on numerous aspects of the bill," Brison said. "I've not found anyone who has all the answers nor anyone who really knows the total content of the bill."

On Friday afternoon Russell McCampbell, assistant to Education Commissioner Robert Bartman, was fielding phone calls from media representatives and attempting to sift through the 139 pages of legislation.

He was looking at changes and trying to determine how the bill would affect specific schools.

"After several dozen phone calls," Brison said late Friday, "this is the best we can determine."

Of the 22 school districts in Sen. Peter Kinder's district, all but two appear to be winners. Nell Holcomb and Scott County Central would receive less money based on the formula if not for the hold-harmless clause.

Because the legislature voted not to fund any district below it's current rate, those district would receive the same dollars as this year, but no increase.

"This reflects back to the old formula and how out of kilter it had become over the years," Brison said. "This is the equity feature being addressed."

Brison said he has been unable to learn exactly what each figure in the simulations circulated Friday represent.

He believes the base number includes how much money districts receive per pupil, based on average daily attendance, when the state minimum guarantee and current taxes are added.

"We still don't know what is included in the base number," Brison said.

Brison said he learned that Proposition C "will be handled a little differently." But no one seemed to know what changes had been made.

"What we are not sure about is how Prop. C fits into this, how textbook money fits in, how transportation money fits in...," Brison said.

Cape Girardeau schools business manager Larry Dew agreed that more information is needed about the specifics of the bill. "We don't know what is included in these figures," he said.

He expressed some disappointment, though.

"At one point we were looking at a $1.2 million or $1.3 million increase," Dew said. "It looks like we have ended up with about $675,000. That's less than we planned on and less than other districts around us."

Brison explained that the figures circulated by state officials showing the impact of the bill include new state money added with new local money.

One of the changes makes districts adopt a minimum operating tax levy of $2.75. Many area school boards would be raising taxes to meet that level.

"A significant part of almost all those numbers will be new local dollars instead of new state dollars," Brison said. "I really don't think the public and those in the General Assembly understand."

In Scott City, for example, Brison said the base is $2,431 and the new number is $2,649, an increase of $218 per pupil.

"But we will have to increase our taxes 48 cents," Brison said. "So $166 of those dollars will be local dollars."

Brison said the legislature is forcing local districts to raise their tax levies.

"The blame is passed to local boards, but really it's the General Assembly. The board's don't have a choice in the decision they have got to make. There is not a school around that could afford not to participate in the state formula."

Cape Girardeau, on the other hand, exceeds $2.75 at $2.85. But officials were unsure if the new funding level shown was based on a $2.75 tax rate or the actual $2.85 rate.

The new formula would be phased in over four years. The figures show the effect of legislation after four years, Brison said.

Next year schools would be funded 25 percent through the new formula and 75 percent through the old formula. The next year it would be 50-50.

The hold-harmless portion would be phased out over the same four years. "So districts have got four years to prepare for the drop," Brison said.

Brison said he had hoped legislators would not approve the bill Friday, and instead would have brought it up in a special session.

"It has got barnacles attached," Brison said.

Superintendent Michael Johnson of Thomas W. Kelly Schools at Benton expressed frustration that legislators left such complicated matters to the last minutes of the session. Johnson said he suspects many legislators had no chance to actually read the entire bill they voted on and depended on what others were telling them to make decisions.

"According to the constitution, education is supposed to be the state's top priority after dealing with the debt. It seems they would deal with education-related issues at the first of the session. But they always do it just in reverse.