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Hillsboro School Board Passes Funding Resolutions
February 4, 2019 - At their regular session meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2019, the Hillsboro School Board unanimously passed a pair of resolutions aimed at increasing funding for Oregon public schools.
The first urges lawmakers to support student success and increase public school funding. By their passage of the resolution, Board members pledge to support and encourage efforts to increase state revenue.
The second specifically calls upon elected officials to fund public schools at the level outlined by the Quality Education Model (QEM). Citing the work done and conclusions made by the Joint Committee on Student Success, the resolution, in part, states: “…school board members need to help shoulder the responsibility for making the case to Oregon’s voters that the Legislature needs to prioritize investing to the level of the QEM to assure educational opportunities for every student in every district in our state.”
A potentially promising piece of legislation, Senate Bill 552, was filed as a placeholder prior to the start of the 2019 Legislative Session. This bill would require the state to fund the QEM.
The QEM calls for a K-12 allocation of $10.73 billion in the 2019-21 biennium. Governor Brown’s proposal for 2019-21 K-12 funding is $8.972 billion. Governor Brown has also proposed a $2 billion education reinvestment plan, just under half of which would be dedicated to lowering class sizes in grades K-3 and increasing the school year for all students.
So far, funding mechanisms have not yet been identified for either the Governor’s reinvestment plan or the QEM. However, several education-related entities and coalitions are calling upon the Legislature to make tough decisions around revenue reform this session.
These funding resolutions join the Board’s recently-adopted Legislative Priorities (prioridades legislativas en español) in outlining a plan for advocacy throughout the 2019 Legislative Session.
Please visit the Budget Matters website for additional information.