State Aid Measure Moves to Governor
Air Date:03/12/2010
By Eryn Clement
Legislation that doesn't increase state financial aid to schools next year is on its way to the governor. Governor Mike Rounds proposed a zero percent increase in his budget for general and special education. The bill spurred a lot of controversy moving from the State House and Senate to conference committees. Opponents counter that the expectations continue to grow for schools but the funding is diminishing. Representative Bob Faehn is a proponent of the bill. He says it’s not about wanting to hurt schools but more about making responsible decisions.
“Nobody likes this. We’re not having fun here. We’re not enjoying the fact that we can’t give more money to K-12 education this year. There’s no malice in our hearts against any of these children. We want to give this group of young citizens in South Dakota the very best education they can possibly have,” says Faehn.
The current law gives schools a 1.2 percent funding boost next year. Senate bill 22 passed with a 43 to 27 vote in the State House.
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