Lawmaker Pitches New Study of K-12 Education Funding
Lincoln – A Nebraska lawmaker urged her colleagues Tuesday to create a state commission to study how to pay for K-12 public schools, an issue that has become contentious as some senators push for lower property taxes.
State Sen. Wendy DeBoer of Bennington said the commission could look for ways to pay for schools other than property taxes while still providing equal opportunities to children.
The new state commission would present its preliminary findings to lawmakers in 2022. The current, proposed commission would have 16 members, including the state education commissioner, a school finance representative, school board members and others.
DeBoer said she was open to adding members and changing the commission’s makeup. “When we do this, we need to be truly collaborative and we need a lot of voices at the table,” DeBoer said to the Legislature’s Education Committee.
Nebraska lawmakers have created similar organizations before, including a water task force that brought together citizens, lawmakers and elected officials to try to mitigate flooding and water shortages.
In 2013, lawmakers created a legislative Tax Modernization Committee to examine the state tax system. Some members rejected its findings because the committee called for an increase in school aid and didn’t recommend income tax cuts.
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