 March/April 2000 (XXXVIII 2) |
YM's Public Education Working Group is very pleased with a bill that has been introduced in Pennsylvania regarding funding for public education. The KEEPS bill (Keystone Equity and Educational Performance System — House Bill No. 2106) proposes a new way to distribute state funds to support public schools.
Why is this important to us? This proposal uses the actual per-pupil costs of the most successful schools as the basis for determining the necessary funding level for all schools. It would provide money based on size and level of need. It would make the education of all students in Pennsylvania a priority, whether the student lives in Philadelphia or Radnor or some small rural school district.
The KEEPS bill would increase the state income tax 0.5% each year for three years, making the revenue from this tax the primary source of funding for public education. This is both a more stable revenue source and a fairer reflection of a family's ability to pay than are local property taxes. The state of Pennsylvania would go from providing roughly 35% of a school's funding to providing 63.5% of the total cost. This would notably improve the education for more than three out of five schools in the state. Every school in Pennsylvania would receive additional money, so there are no losers in this program. The KEEPS bill would allow each individual school district to decide if and how to adjust local property taxes to reflect this changed funding situation.
The Public Education Working Group will present more information on this at the Saturday morning sessions of Yearly Meeting on March 25 at the Fourth and Arch Street Meeting House in Philadelphia. We are looking for your thoughts and opinions on this issue, and will have some specific ideas on possible actions based on how Friends feel we should proceed with this issue. We look forward to hearing from you.
Gretchen Stitt Jeavons
Swarthmore Meeting (PA)
Public Education Working Group
Last modified: Wednesday, February 18, 2004 at 08:18 AM