FUNDING GAPS SHOW FOLLY OF SB380'S FINANCIAL STRUCTURE

Here is just another illustration of the lunacy of Senate Bill 380 and the Outstanding Schools Act. SB380 was the largest tax increase in the history of Missouri. It passed the Legislature and became law without voter approval.

But now nine Southeast Missouri schools find themselves "hold harmless" under a new and convoluted formula that distributes state funds. That means Cape Girardeau, Nell Holcomb, Bell City, South Iron, New Madrid Co. R-1, Cooter R-IV, Pemiscot R-III, Centerville and Lesterville and 72 other schools across the state won't receive any additional funding through the formula. Where did the $310 million from SB380 go?

The "hold harmless" phrase means that schools won't get less state funding than before. To equalize the distribution of state funding, the pie had to grow substantially. Other area schools are big winners in the new formula, which rewards not only a growing tax levy but climbing enrollments. Jackson will receive $794,826 more, Sikeston, $1,126,183 and Poplar Bluff $1,323,183 in additional state dollars.

As if this outrageous tax bite wasn't bad enough, the new formula encourages a tax-and-spend attitude on the part of schools. It mandated schools to raise tax levies to a minimum of $2.50. Many Southeast Missouri schools doubled their local levies for fear of losing state funds. The formula rewarded those schools with additional state money. So school districts living on a shoe-string budget suddenly found themselves with hundreds of thousands -- and sometimes millions -- of extra dollars.

Money isn't the answer to better schools. It can help, but it will not guarantee excellence. The Kansas City School District is a perfect example. The desegregation lawsuit has pumped millions upon millions of state dollars into that urban district, but academic growth hasn't nearly kept pace with the dollar output.

This isn't sour grapes. Cape Girardeau's public schools will receive some money from the Outstanding Schools Act through such specialized programs as A+ Schools and reinstatement of summer school.

But taxpayers must wonder if these extra dollars for the Outstanding Schools Act were really needed at all. Taxpayers should demand that these extra dollars translate into better schools. If they don't, a taxpayer and parent revolt may be in the offing. Schools will find the added dollars are accompanied by heightened scrutiny from the public.

Historically, education groups have criticized Missouri for ranking near the bottom of national comparisons in the spending on education. This ranking isn't necessarily bad. It means that Missouri has some of the finest schools in the nation at an economical cost.

At some point, government bureaucrats must learn that spending must be controlled. If dollars are saved in one program, they should be returned to taxpayers and not spent elsewhere. Taxpayers must demand fiscal accountability from our schools, legislature and government. More is not necessarily better.