A Bold Budgeting Initiative by State Lawmakers?
April 26, 2010 - The Georgia General Assembly, in its waning days in the 2010 session, has a number of important measures to consider. Not the least of which is the budget.
I sympathize with our state lawmakers on this. They face a billion dollar shortfall. Their deficit is the only thing that dwarfs our own DeKalb County School budget, which is facing a $115 million dollar shortfall as well.
So what innovative, bold initiatives are they considering at the 11th hour? They are considering a study committee for the DeKalb County School Board. A study committee!
Well, I told them I could save them the trouble. We don't need a study committee, we need funding. Specifically, DeKalb County Schools needs the funding that the State of Georgia has withheld for years, to the tune of $110 million so far. If we had that money, we wouldn't be talking about raising taxes or cutting programs, would we?
Anyway, I gave them a piece of my mind. If you'd like to see it for yourself, click here for my verbatim remarks. To see the funding that the state is keeping from DeKalb County Schools, click here. And by the way, next year the General Assembly is going to take away another $53 million.
I don't think a study committee will fix that.
Yours in partnership,
Dr. Eugene P. Walker
DeKalb County School Board
District 9
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Between a Rock and a Hard Place
