Balancing state budgets and improving our schools

[dude1394]

Interesting article about how state governments can improve their budgets while improving school performance as well. I would actually vote for a democrat if they had the cajones to fix public education.

A very interesting part of this is where the k-12 spending is twice medicaid. Obviously there are opportunities to improve what's been touted as deficient educational systems.

http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/2008/...uts/#more-4011

Chris Edwards rightly takes the Wall Street Journal to task for its breathless report that “the stumbling U.S. economy is forcing states to slash spending and cut jobs in order to close a projected $40 billion shortfall in the current fiscal year.”

Like he says, smaller spending increases are “certainly no crisis after the orgy of budget expansion in recent years.”And Medicaid spending is dangerously out of control.

I’d only add that states are spending much more on k-12 education than Medicaid. At 25 percent of all state-derived expenditures, it’s almost double Medicaid’s 13 percent share. State spending on k-12 education dwarfs any other category.

And while cuts in government spending are a good thing, saving money with a huge expansion of freedom is even better.

That’s why the best way solve state budget problems is something no one is yet considering; broad-based school choice.

Here’s what the five states in our recent fiscal analysis of the Public Education Tax Credit stand to save if they do what’s right and greatly expand educational freedom:

Texas saves $15.9 billion in the first 10 years and $5.4 billion every year after the program has been in operation for 15 years.

New York saves $15.1 billion in the first 10 years and $4.8 billion every year after the program has been in operation for 15 years.

Wisconsin saves $9.3 billion in the first 10 years and $3.2 billion every year after the program has been in operation for 15 years.

Illinois saves $5.1 billion in the first 10 years and $1.6 billion every year after the program has been in operation for 15 years.

South Carolina saves $1.1 billion in the first 10 years and $350 million every year after the program has been in operation for 15 years.

[chumdawg]

dude, what is involved with the Public Education Tax Credit this guy is shilling for?

[dude1394]

To be honest...I haven't gotten into it that much. But at a basic level it's a way to allow for "vouchers" without providing taxpayer dollars as vouchers. It's a mechanism to do the same thing with tax credits. They feel it's more doable politically, which is the biggest hurdle.

Basically what they are stating is that tax credits are more palatable than giving dollars and tougher to legislate against.

[chumdawg]

I guess I just can't wrap my mind around how this is going to save states money. You're still going to have the same number of kids going to school, right? Is the contention that better-performing schools are also more cost efficient? I don't see where the savings are coming from...

[dude1394]

Originally Posted by chumdawg

I guess I just can't wrap my mind around how this is going to save states money. You're still going to have the same number of kids going to school, right? Is the contention that better-performing schools are also more cost efficient? I don't see where the savings are coming from...

I would expect savings in efficiency and getting rid of the political patronage that goes on with large institutional school systems. Think the post office running an airline.

But I haven't gotten into the savings details that much. I'll take a look at it, because I"m interested as well. Of course I'm more interested in blowing up the public school system in general as it's a failed experiment imo.

Without going through all of the math...the premise is that public school spending per child is higher for public schools than it is for private. Moving children to private would be the cost savings.

[ShaggyDirk]

oh my, I started typing a point 10 different times. It's not worth it to get this worked up on a message board. What a cluster-fk!

[ribosoma]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMqJvhmD5Yg