SENATOR ADVOCATES TAX PLAN; LEGISLATOR: SUPPORT OF GOVERNOR CRUCIAL

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The chances of getting Missouri voters to pass a $456 million tax hike for education may be seriously lessened if Gov. John Ashcroft doesn't support the measure, State Sen. Roger Wilson (D-Columbia) said Thursday.

"It may have the capacity to singlehandedly doom the effort," Wilson told reporters at a press conference in the University Center on the Southeast Missouri State University campus.

But he added that he hoped Ashcroft would end up supporting the tax measure, which would require approval of Missouri voters before it could be implemented.

Following the press conference, Wilson spoke to a gathering of about 75 faculty members, staff and administrators at Southeast, which included university President Kala Stroup. The open forum was also held at the University Center.

The Missouri Senate approved the education tax plan on a 24-10 vote last week. An education bill is now under consideration in the Missouri House.

Wilson predicted that some education package will be agreed upon by the House and Senate and placed before Missouri voters. The Senate bill calls for placing the tax measure before voters in November.

Ashcroft has criticized the Senate bill for not containing adequate reforms in education.

But Wilson said the governor should spell out the reforms he wants to see.

"I deeply resent the reform game that is being played," said Wilson.

Ashcroft has talked of wanting to see a 200-day school year at the elementary and secondary level, but he has not explained how he would come up with the $320 million needed to fund such a move, Wilson said.

The Senate bill would increase the state's individual and corporate income, sales and cigarette taxes.

The largest share of the tax revenue, $247 million, would be earmarked for public colleges and universities.

The second largest amount, $185 million, would go to elementary and secondary schools, vocational training and adult literacy programs. Another $24 million would fund job development and tourism.

Wilson acknowledged that taxpayers don't want to see tax hikes. "Nobody gets up in the morning and says, `Wow, what a great day for a tax increase.'"

But he said the tax package is needed to provide adequate funding for elementary and secondary education, as well as higher education.

"It's the devil with the shortest horns," remarked Wilson.

He contended that the tax package is "saleable" to the voters. "You've got to remember in this situation, bad breath is better than no breath at all."

Improved education, he said, is essential to the economic health of Missouri. Businesses, he added, need a highly educated, well-trained work force.

College-educated persons generally make more money and consequently pay more taxes, which in turn benefits state government and the economy, Wilson said. "We're going to get five times our money back in taxes alone."

There are 33,000 applications for student grants in Missouri, but currently only 8,000 students can obtain the grants because of limited funding, Wilson said.

Forty of Missouri's public school districts are currently going broke, he noted. Of the 545 public school districts in the state, 280 are receiving less money per pupil than they did last year.

"For the last 12 years," he added, "elementary and secondary education has been shortchanged."

Wilson said some of the tax money would go to deal with "children at risk" and provide funding for the Parents As Teachers program.

It's important, he said, to deal with education at the pre-school level. He noted that 2,000 Missouri children, ages 3 to 6, spend their days at home alone, with no care giver.

"Where are they going to matriculate from, SEMO or the Missouri State Penitentiary?" asked Wilson.

A former assistant principal, Wilson said education is the "marrow of our state."

He contended that Missouri should strive for excellence in education. The Senate plan, he said, would lead to improvements in education.

He added that the measure "is a very strong, but incremental step toward being the best in the nation."

As part of the plan, the Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education would be given authority to decide how to spend much of the added tax revenue that would be earmarked for public colleges and universities.

Wilson said that provision was "a monumental concession" on the part of the Senate.

He said the plan would lead to more centralized planning in regards to the state's public colleges and universities, with the intent of limiting duplication of programs and services.

The plan would also include money for badly needed repair and maintenance of school buildings.

Wilson maintained the tax plan doesn't favor higher education over other areas of education, but rather distributes the funding over a large number of areas.

"I don't think that higher education is making off with any bacon," the state senator said.

The tax plan, among other things, would cap the individual federal income tax deduction on state returns at $10,000.

Missourians making $50,000 to $70,000 would pay an added $90 a year in taxes, Wilson estimated.

Said Wilson, "We're talking about a small amount to help a lot of people."