Idaho state schools Superintendent Tom Luna has come full circle on school budget cuts. First, he proposed $62 million in cuts in education next year that he called a list of "bad ideas." Then, when initial word came about the amount of federal stimulus money headed to Idaho, he said Idaho might not have to cut schools at all next year. Now, fresh back from Washington, D.C. and a White House meeting with Vice President Joe Biden and Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Luna is again talking up to $62 million in cuts in schools next year. Nevertheless, he pronounced himself "pleased" and said Idaho shouldn't have to make an additional $47 million cut to schools - by trimming personnel funding 5 percent across the board - as lawmakers called for on Feb. 13.

"What we have learned is that there is a considerable amount of money that will be coming to Idaho to stabilize our education budget," Luna said at a press conference today, just hours after he returned from his trip. "It's going to fill a lot of the holes, but it's not going to fill all the holes." He added, "We're going to have to make some cuts in education." Luna said he hasn't yet decided just what he'll propose to lawmakers, but he's sticking by his earlier position that Idaho could cut up to $62 million from schools next year without reducing student-teacher contact time. Those cuts, which he outlined to JFAC earlier, before the stimulus bill passed, include a cut in personnel funding equal to three contract days; cutting building maintenance by a third; freezing teacher pay increases for experience; eliminating about 40 school administrators statewide; cutting transportation funding; and cutting textbook purchases by 40 percent. "Education is going to have to be trimmed," he said.

Luna did bring back a big piece of good news for Idaho school districts: The federal government will be more than doubling the amount of special education funding it sends to the state - and that change is intended to be permanent. "It was obvious from the vice president and the secretary that they expect these funds to go on," he said, though he added, "That's between the president and Congress." However, he said, "They made it very clear ... that this is the new funding level for these programs." Federal law requires the federal government to fund 40 percent of the costs of special education, which school districts must provide, Luna said, but the most the federal government has ever sent is 23 percent. That's forced districts to dip into their other funds to make up the difference. "This gets it, obviously, to full funding," Luna said. "They can spend those local dollars on other things."

---

---