Schools for Fair Funding

Plaintiff’s Remedy Brief

Posted on May 8, 2018

Briefs in Gannon were filed on May 7th.  You can find the Plaintiffs’ brief in its entirety here 2018-05-07 Plaintiffs Remedy Brief with abbreviated Appendix (1)

Highlights from the brief demonstrate why S.B. 423 is unconstitutional:

• The State Commissioned a New Study to Estimate the Costs of Providing a Constitutional Education, Which Estimated that Education Spending Should Increase by at Least $1.786 Billion.
• The State’s own expert completely obliterates any argument that $192 million can generate the results required to reach constitutional compliance.
• After Receiving the WestEd Report, the State Adopted S.B. 423 and Funded Less Than What Its Expert Predicted was Necessary to Adequately Fund Education.

• S.B. 423 does not appropriately account for inflation.

Accounting for inflation, Kansas school districts will receive:

• $192 million in “new money” in FY19;
• $11.5 million in “new money” in FY20;
• $14.5 million in “new money” and FY21;
• $15.8 million in “new money” in FY22; and
• $18.2 million in “new money” in FY23.

Almost half of the “new money” for FY19 actually comes from the $96 million increase previously provided in S.B. 19.

• S.B. 423 is politically motivated and does not reflect cost-based decisions that are reasonably calculated to have all students meet or exceed the standards set out in Rose.
• S.B. 423 continues to knowingly underfund special education.

Equity Violations:

•  S.B. 423 violates Article 6’s equity requirement because it retains a protest petition and election process regarding LOB.
• S.B. 423 further violates Article 6’s equity requirement by requiring a transfer from the LOB to the at-risk and bilingual funds.
• S.B. 423 further violates Article 6’s equity requirement by mandating that all districts adopt a 15% Local Option Budget.

For the reasons stated herein, Plaintiffs request that this Court

1.  Declare S.B. 423 unconstitutional.
2.  Enter a finding that the Legislature should appropriate at least enough money to   meet the KSBE’s request for additional resources for FY19. This would require that   the State fund a base of $5,090 for FY19, costing an additional $506   million this   year.
3. Enter a finding requiring the full funding of Special Education at 92% of Excess Costs as required by statute.
4. Phase in additional increases in the out-years to reach the approximate additional $1.786 – $2.067 billion (in 2016-17 dollars) indicated by the State’s own cost study.
5. Incorporate a CPI increase to the amounts funded during any phase-in period to reach adequacy.
6. Remove any requirement that LOB authority be linked to a protest/election requirement.
7. Remove any requirement that LOB funding be mandatory, or equalize any mandatory LOB to the 100th percentile.
8. Remove any provisions that require mandatory transfers from LOB that discriminate based upon the percentage of LOB adopted.