DESEG NEGOTIATIONS COULD USE HELP FROM LEGISLATORS

The arrival of another school year means still more of the interminable school desegregation talks whose ostensible aim is to end Missouri's costly commitment to remedying the vestiges of a racially segregated school system. Fixing that indefensible dual system, which ended decades ago, has now cost Missouri taxpayers nearly two billion dollars in federal court-ordered spending -- more than $1.6 in Kansas City alone.

Gov. Mel Carnahan's designated point man for these talks is St. Louis University Law Professor Mike Wolff, a two-time candidate for attorney general known for taking liberal positions on most issues. Herein lies at least a portion of the problem. The Carnahan-Wolff negotiating team showed its hand when, in the wake of a breakthrough win for Missouri in the U.S. Supreme Court, they paid to the Kansas City district $5.4 million that the high court had ruled unlawful.

Four Republican state senators called on the governor to step aside from the negotiations, declaring that by his action authorizing this payment he had forfeited their confidence. Although this call was ignored, it wasn't long before Senate President Pro Tem Jim Mathewson from Sedalia -- a Democrat -- called for some legislative representation at the table as these talks proceed. In an Aug. 8 letter to the federal magistrate overseeing the case, Mathewson said, "In light of the role the legislature may ultimately play in formalizing the final plan developed through negotiations, we believe the involvement of the legislative branch is essential to securing acceptable closure to the court-ordered desegregation of the Kansas City schools." His letter also requested copies of minutes of the negotiations over the last several months.

Sen. Mathewson is right to seek a role in these talks for the elected representatives of the people. He is right that it is lawmakers who will ultimately have to approve appropriated funds. It is to be hoped that certain key lawmakers will gain a seat at the table.