MICHIGAN SHIFTS SCHOOL FUNDING TO SALES TAX

Missouri is not rare among states looking to supply young people with a fair ration of educational resources. In fact, two dozen states face lawsuits stemming from plaintiffs' contentions that financing systems for public education are grossly inequitable and that property owners are bearing an unfair burden in revenue generation. Now comes Michigan, which saw its legislature do away with property taxes as a primary source of school funding last July and saw its voters this month raise sales taxes as a means of picking up the slack. While we don't suggest that Missouri follow Michigan's model, we believe this development opens an opportunity for discussion.

There are some solid arguments made for rejecting the Michigan example. Sales taxes are volatile, always linked to the ebb and flow of the economy. Property taxes, on the other hand, possess a stability that makes them attractive for the ongoing funding of public schools. Stability, of course, also serves to shut out any dramatic growth in revenue.

In Missouri, the property tax base was not the target of displeasure in a lawsuit that touched off a race to overhaul the school foundation formula. Instead, the equity of the distribution was questioned, and the jury is still out (figuratively if not literally) on whether fairness was achieved with the law's rewriting. Extension of this with a sales tax increase dedicated to education would not in itself repair this situation.

Where talk of a sales tax may be meaningful with regard to local education is in the community's potential willingness to upgrade the public school system here without placing more of a burden on the property owner. In two failed school issues last year, word came back from many who owned property, including numerous citizens who have no children enrolled in public schools, that the higher tax burden was falling unfairly on them. While school officials can continue to tinker with the size and packaging of the issues they offer to voters, this property tax paradigm remains intact.

Perhaps there is a way to shake up this formula. While the governing bodies of the city and the schools are separate and distinct, as are the established funding mechanisms, the health of Cape Girardeau's educational system is of supreme interest to the community as a whole. A first-rate school district stands as an economic development tool, just as it helps regenerate the next wave in the workforce and future taxpaying citizens. If Cape Girardeau wants its schools to thrive beyond the capacity that property taxes and state funding distribution allow, a sales tax might supply an option.

Certainly, the city council must safeguard the interests of all citizens, including those who have no stake in the public school system. It is true that other civic improvements (streets, sewers and so on) might command expanded sales tax rates to be effected. And it is true that raising sales taxes to unreasonable levels can eventually have an adverse revenue impact, effectively chasing shoppers to other communities. However, a sales tax can provide ample resources during times of economic prosperity. One beauty of such a tax is that many people from outside the city help pay it. Perhaps the tax increase -- which would require voter approval -- could have a sunset, in place for several years to achieve a specific purpose. Since Cape Girardeau has a relatively stable retail base, it would not necessarily be guesswork in calculating the likelihood of a specific revenue amount being realized.

In the past, city and school officials have gotten together to build and operate a municipal swimming pool at the high school. (In a similar sense, the city and Southeast Missouri State University teamed up to make the Show Me Center a reality.) Why should the cooperation be limited to an athletic facility? Why not consider other options? We believe the well-being of the public school system and that of the community as a whole are intertwined. One is dependent on the other. We likewise believe all manners of funding should be discussed for upgrading educational opportunities here, that crossing the time-honored (and perhaps time-worn) line between municipal and school financing should be a subject worth discussing.