JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - A bill proposing an inflationary component in the state’s method of providing basic school funding drew strong responses during a Senate Education Committee hearing Friday.
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Berta Gardner, D-Anchorage, ties the base student allocation to inflation rates provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. It also calls for an additional increase of $404 per student in the allocation, as opposed to Gov. Sean Parnell’s proposed increase of $85 per student for next year.
“I am reluctant to imbed inflation into our budgets because we would quickly lose control of them,” said Sen. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka.
Alaska Department of Education and Early Development Deputy Commissioner Les Morse underscored Stedman’s comments, saying the Parnell administration would not want an inflationary component in the formula because it would make budgeting unpredictable.
However, Ketchikan Superintendent Robert Boyle urged action on the Gardner bill so school districts could get away from constant one-time funding for the allocation, which does not take into account increasing costs every year.
“It has become clear to me for a long time that there is no support in the Legislature, nor with the governor, for inflation proofing,” Gardner said.
Pat Galvin, former commissioner for the Alaska Department of Revenue, told the committee the $404 increase in the allocation is needed to restore Anchorage schools to where they had been a few years ago.
Anchorage School Board President Tam Agasti-Gisler also testified in support of Gardner’s bill.
“We are questioning if we cut too much here,” Agasti-Gisler said. “We fear we’re taking steps backwards rather than forwards.”
Agasti-Gisler noted that even if the allocation rate is raised by $404 next year over current levels, there would still need to be an increase of $125 for the next two years for Anchorage to avoid additional cuts.
“You do realize the state is facing deficits over the next couple of years?” Stedman said.
The Anchorage School District cut $25 million from its budget last year and another $23 million this year. Agasti-Gisler said the district will be cutting an additional $26 million next year.
She told the committee that the causes for the budget cuts have been health care, improving technology in the classroom, energy costs and inflation.
Sitka School Board President Lon Garrison told the committee it would take a $500 increase in the base student allocation for Sitka to return to performance levels it had a few years ago.
“Money going to the classroom has been relatively flat,” Garrison said.
Sen. Mike Dunleavy, R-Wasilla, had earlier taken issue with comments that the state had been doing nothing in regards to education. He said the state has pumped a $100 million into education almost every year for the last 10 years despite falling student enrollment. Part of Dunleavy’s equation includes retirement funding.
“I have been studying the state constitution and it seems to me education should be our first priority. I am with you about raising the BSA,” Dunleavy said. “I feel we should move funds away from adult education into constitutionally mandated education.”
Stedman immediately took issue with Dunleavy, saying there will soon be a high demand for skilled workers for the gas pipeline project under debate, and that without proper training, Alaskans will be relegated to lower paying positions on the project.
The bill remains in committee.
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