Democratic leaders in the House and Senate say it’s full steam ahead for a plan to dramatically reduce the number of school districts in Vermont, despite a task force’s recommendation that they abandon the controversial proposal.
Streamlining governance in Vermont’s education system is the critical first step in a sweeping education reform law approved by Democratic lawmakers and Republican Gov. Phil Scott earlier this year. A special commission created by the Legislature to redraw district maps, however, has delivered an alternative proposal that relies on voluntary mergers, and new cooperative sharing agreements, to achieve economies of scale.
House Speaker Jill Krowinski said Wednesday that she appreciates the work done this summer and fall by the Vermont School District Redistricting Task Force. But she said she’ll be urging members of her chamber to vote to create new school district boundaries during the next legislative session.
“We have come to the conclusion that … consolidation needs to happen. And the question is, ‘How do you do it?” Krowinski said Wednesday. “And that’s where you’re seeing this tension. What is the best map? What is the best scenario to make sure our kids are thriving, that they are getting the best education at a price we can afford?”
More: Act 73 is already changing Vermont's education system
Senate President Pro Tem Phil Baruth was less complimentary of the task force’s work. The Chittenden County Democrat said Wednesday that it had abrogated the mandate given to it by lawmakers, echoing Gov. Scott’s stance.
The task force was co-chaired by Democratic lawmakers.
“When you are charged by majorities in the House and the Senate to do a task, and you accept an appointment to a body to perform that task, it’s not up to you and it’s not within your purview to say, ‘No, we’re going to do something completely different,’” Baruth said.
The Senate leader said that under the new education reform law, Act 73, creating new districts is the only path to a new funding system that offers the surest way to control school spending.
Act 73 would largely replace the local school budgeting process with a more centralized approach in which schools are given a “foundation formula” based on enrollment figures, student need and other factors.
“What the foundation formula does is it sets a ceiling for every district. … It says to them, ‘You’re only going to be able to spend this much,’” Baruth said. “The way the system works right now is there is no cap, and that’s part of our problem.”
More: Members of Vermont's school redistricting task force respond to critiques
Jericho Rep. Edye Graning, the Democratic co-chair of the task force, said it became clear to her and fellow members that redistricting wasn’t going to achieve the broader goals in the reform law.
“When we started digging into all of that, we realized that drawing lines on a map wasn’t going to solve the cost issue that Vermonters are facing every day,” Graning said.
The panel instead proposed creating nonprofit entities that would exist outside existing district frameworks. These “Cooperative Education Service Areas” would, according to the taskforce, allow districts to enter into regional contracts for services such as transportation, payroll systems and special education.
“We thought that would be a much faster way to get a lower cost to Vermonters through property taxes,” Graning said. “Merging districts takes years. Adding cooperative services doesn’t.”
Time is of the essence for lawmakers as they seek to control costs in the education system. The Vermont Department of Taxes this week issued a projection that shows property taxes rising by 11.9% on average next year.
