Page 5
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Lack of attention to state’s ed budget
causes concern, remedial legislation
By SCOTT JORGENSEN
IVN Staff Writer
Several budgets have
already been passed by the
Oregon Legislature since the
start of this session in Janu-
ary, but as of now, no work
has been done on the state’s
education budget.
And there is already a
substantial difference be-
tween the dollar figures re-
quested by education groups
and what may end up being
allocated.
Important Programs
Yet Unfunded
According to Rep.
Bruce Hanna
(R-Roseburg),
a member of
the
Legisla-
ture’s budget-
writing Ways
and
Means
Committee, the
Legislature
already
has
appropriated a
large amount
of
taxpayer
dollars,
but
funding
for
some of the state’s most
important programs have
yet to be considered.
“We have managed to
spend some $326 million
out of the General Fund, but
we’ve yet to have a co-
chair’s budget. We just keep
approving budgets for Gen-
eral Fund money, but don’t
know what the big dollars
will be for the larger budg-
ets,” Hanna said.
“We’ve been making
decisions for all other fund
budgets, small General Fund
budgets, but the fact is,
those that should be a prior-
ity were not taken up,” he
added.
The last two legislative
sessions have stretched on
into August, and on both
occasions, the education
budget was one of the last
items passed. Joy Marshall,
who serves as the Lane
County organizer for educa-
tion advocate group Oregon
Stand for Children (SFC),
said that such delays do a
tremendous disservice to the
state’s schools and students.
District Planning
Hampered
“It’s not fair for the
districts who have to figure
out how many teachers they
have to hire and for kids
who don’t know how big
their classrooms are going to
be,” Marshall said. “Clearly,
August is too late.”
Three Rivers School
District begins its budgeting
process in early February,
said Superintendent Jerry
Fritts. Oregon’s school dis-
tricts begin their fiscal years
on July 1, and base their
budgets on estimates pro-
vided by the Oregon Dept.
of Education (DOE).
Legislative remedies
have been proposed to end
the delays and force law-
makers to fund education as
a priority item.
Resolution Offered
Sen. Jason Atkinson (R-
Central Point) has sponsored
Senate Joint Resolution
(SJR) 16. If passed, the bill
would require the Legisla-
ture to pass its education
budget during the first 81
days of its session. Failure
to do so would result in leg-
islators forfeiting their pay
until the education budget is
passed.
Honesty
Integrity
Atkinson said that he
has been working on such
legislation for the last four
years, and that it is long
overdue.
“The K-12 budget bill is
over half of the state budget
and the single biggest item
that we pay for,” Atkinson
said. “We all agree that it’s
the most important, but it’s
the last budget to pass.”
Atkinson said he was
inspired to draft the bill after
examining how other states
do their budgets.
“I looked at the states of
Washington, Idaho, Utah
and Florida, who all pass
their entire budgets in 60
days,” Atkinson said. “If a
state the size of Florida can
pass their entire budget in 60
days, why can’t we pass the
budget that everyone cam-
paigns on first?”
Hanna is co-sponsoring
similar legislation, in the
form of House Joint Resolu-
tion (HJR) 21. He said that
such legislation would make
it easier for school districts
to pass their budgets, and
would speed the state budg-
eting process.
Budgets Based
On ‘Guesstimates’
“When 61-cents of
every dollar coming in to
the state of Oregon goes to
education, until you make
that decision, you’re guess-
ing at everything else,”
Hanna said. “What happens
is, school districts move
forward on faith.
“They have to take their
best estimate for what they
think is going to happen, the
fiscal year begins and they
have to start. They have to
take their best guesstimate.”
Fritts said that such leg-
islation “might help a little
bit,” due to the lengthy
budgeting process involved
at the school district level.
“I don’t think it would
save the day. It would be
better,” Fritts said. “But the
process is 90 or so intense
days. We can’t do it all in a
few days. It’s not physically
possible to.”
Most school districts
prepare their budgets by
April, at which point their
budget committees review
them. The state’s revenue
forecast comes out in May,
at which point districts must
make their necessary adjust-
ments. Districts then pass
their budgets in June.
“Anything not passed
by April 1 is too late for us,”
said Fritts. “Whether it’s
April, May, June or July
doesn’t make any differ-
ence. Without the resources
that are available, of which
85 percent are from the
state, we’re guessing in any
event.”
There’s also the issue of
how much the Legislature
plans to spend on K-12 edu-
cation for the next bien-
nium. Marshall said that
Dependability
Attention Buyers!
Take advantage of this “Buyer’s
Market” now! We live here, work
here, know the area well, & support
our local community! Call us NOW for
all your real estate buying & selling
needs!
Steve Lyons
592-3181
SFC plans to lobby the Leg-
islature to fund education at
$6.3 billion, even though
Gov. Kulongoski’s pro-
posed budget calls for $6.06
billion.
‘More Funding’ needed
Marshall points out that
Oregon’s schools have the
fourth-largest class sizes in
the nation; its elementary
schools have the second-
largest class sizes in the na-
tion; and the state has one of
the shortest school years in
the nation. More funding
would solve those issues,
Marshall said.
“What we’re asking for
is very reasonable and very
needed,” Marshall said.
SFC is planning to hold
rallies all over the state to
coincide with the May 15
revenue forecast, Marshall
said. However, the organiza-
tion remains undecided on
legislative measures such as
SJR 16 and HJR 21.
“I’m not sure if we have
a position on that,” Marshall
said.
Hanna said that at this
point, it “sure doesn’t seem
likely to me” that the state’s
education budget will be
funded during the first 81
days of this session, or any
time soon. It’s also unlikely
that SJR 16 or HJR 21 will
receive so much as a public
hearing before the 2007
Legislature adjourns.
Ed Budget Needs
Priority - Atkinson
However, Atkinson said
he will continue his push to
pass the education budget as
a priority item. Part of SJR
16 includes referring the
matter to voters, and Atkin-
son said that if given the
chance, Oregon citizens
would support it.
“I want the people of
Oregon to hold the Legisla-
ture accountable for passing
and forcing that kind of
change on the Legislature to
pass that budget first,” At-
kinson said. “That’s why I
prefer this concept, is it al-
lows voters to say, ‘Yes, we
support this.’
“It also allows voters to
say, ‘We voted for it, now
do it’.”
Psoriasis aid
offered free
by nonprofit
Psoriasis is a chronic
skin condition that affects as
many as one in 50 Ameri-
cans, yet many sufferers
may feel isolated as they
struggle to understand and
treat this life-altering dis-
ease.
To help these individu-
als feel less alone and
increase their understanding
of the disease, Psoriasis
Cure Now, a nonprofit pa-
tient advocacy group, is of-
fering a series of free educa-
tional podcasts at
www.psoriasiscurenow.org.
(NewsUSA)
Love is an
irresistible desire
to be irresistibly
desired.
- Robert Frost -
VARSITY BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL nonleague contests were held at Illinois Val-
ley High School on Saturday, March 17. The Cougar baseball squad (above) split a
double-header against Cascade Christian; the score was in I.V.’s favor 14-0 in the
first game, but Cascade took the second game 12-3. For the Cougars, Doug Hoskins,
Andrew Augustadt and Cory Glasgow each had two hits. Jack Anderson scored
three times, and I.V.’s Austin Hocker was the winning pitcher. The girls (below) lost
to Cascade 14-9, 10-1. Samantha Hoskins had a double and a triple for I.V. in the
nightcap. (Photos by Dale & Elaine Sandberg/‘Illinois Valley News’)
Chamber eyes fixing up ‘Welcome’ signs
Illinois Valley Chamber
of Commerce aims to repair
or replace the “Welcome”
signs along Redwood Hwy.
Directors Jim Frick and
Bob Rodriguez are working
to gather information and
bids. One sign, on Hay’s
Hill, was damaged by fire
Nov. 11 when a pickup
truck crashed and ignited.
The other sign, near
Rough & Ready Lumber
Co., for northbound traffic,
is faded and needs repair.
“We should get these in
shape before the summer
tourism season,” said cham-
ber board President Alice
Schaffer.
In other matters during
the board meeting Tuesday,
March 13 at Wild River
Brewing & Pizza Co.,
chamber directors:
*Were advised by Dul-
cie Moore, secretary and
office manager, that 164
persons were recorded at
I.V. Visitor Center during
February, a drop of 218
from February 2006. “Snow
days” were the likely cause.
*Heard from Moore
that she works at the center
from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tues-
days through Fridays.
*Learned that the next
chamber mixer will be held
Friday, April 13 at Eye Care
Group on Caves Hwy.
*Found that the annual
Bluegrass Festival at Lake
Selmac is scheduled for July
21, and that word on renting
the space is awaited from
Josephine County Parks &
Recreation Dept.
*Discovered that Moore
received 100 phone calls
during February, and that
she sent 40 information
packets; 35 of them for
those seeking tourism data.
*Agreed that a commit-
tee will review chamber
bylaws to see if they need
updating or revision.
*Received thanks from
Frick for the lifetime
achievements recognition
afforded his father, Leonard
Frick, during the annual
awards meeting. “It meant
more than you can know,”
said the younger Frick.
*Heard of a proposal by
I.V. Merchants Association
to trade membership lists,
but took no action.
Reverse Mortgages For Senior
Homeowners
Now your home can work for you!
Call today for more information.
Gary Christensen
541-476-3679 Phone
Borrower must be at least 62 years old. Wells
Fargo Home Mortgage is a division of Wells Fargo
Bank, N.A. © 2007 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. All rights
reserved.
GOT WORK???
WE HAVE:
• Compact Rubber Tracked Excavator
• Tractor, Dump Truck and More
WE DO:
• Trenches, Ditches & Post Holes
• Small Roads & Walking Trails
• Brush & Stump Removal
• Fence Lines & Fire Breaks
• Building & Mobile Home Demolition
• Pads, Leveling & Site Prep
• Landscaping & Tree Removal
• Test Holes & Much More
• Property Clean-up
WE ARE:
• On Time and On Budget
10% OFF WITH THIS AD
Fine Dining
KC Phillips General Contractor
Steaks - Chicken - Fish - Large Hamburgers
CCB# 158849 • Insured • Bonded
Restaurant separate from lounge
541-659-5494 FREE ESTIMATES
Now Available Every Day!
Prime Rib & Prime Rib Sandwiches
Bring in this ad for a 10% discount
Becky Newsted
660-2032
Notary Public
101127
02/07
Open 4 to 9 p.m. (winter hours) 7 days
592-2892 or 592-4222
Tell them you saw it in the ‘Illinois Valley News’