The House and the Senate released their proposed budgets for this session. With Washington’s 2.8 billion dollar deficit, we expected cuts. What did grandpa used to say after all? oh that’s right, “money doesn’t grow on trees.”
Thanks, grandpa.
Here are a few lowlights from the budget cuts, but if you want to read about all the education programs that have been reduced or cut, check out this one here.
Proposed cuts from the House budget would:
-Reduce work study programs by 7.7 million dollars
-Eliminate Navigation 101, money that goes towards career and college counseling services for students in 6th-12th grade
-Prohibit any more spending on state need grants (current recipients still get their funds, but nobody new next year)
Proposed cuts from the Senate budget would:
-Reduce work study programs by 7.4 million dollars
-Take away 103 million dollars from Kindergarten through 4th grade classrooms, meaning bigger class sizes and fewer teachers
-Cut college campuses across the state by 6%– regardless of whether they are a 2 year or 4 year campus. This will create disproportionate affects for our State’s higher education institutions
Money may not grow on trees, but we can definitely do something about these missing dollars. We can generate new statewide revenue. Both the House and Senate budgets proposed ways to close tax loopholes and increase minor sales taxes, but it won’t be nearly enough to fill the gaps.
Jim Dawson of Fuse puts it plainly, “you’re looking at about $4 in cuts to every $1 in new revenue sources. The package is not big enough.”
Click here to find and tell your legislators to protect funding for these critical programs.