Minn. school districts: When wealth can't be used

Class warfare among school districts?

Some school officials say that the rich districts are getting richer while the poor are getting poorer -- and that a measure recently introduced in the Legislature would further widen that gap.

At issue is a state law that limits how much property tax revenue a district can raise from its willing voters. That restriction, which dates to the early 1990s, is meant to ensure that all Minnesota students are getting as equitable an education as possible, no matter where they go to school.

But in a year when the Legislature is unlikely to offer new K-12 funding and schools will grasp at any straw to get more money, a few west suburban districts would like that restriction removed. They argue that if their voters are willing to dig more deeply into their pockets for schools, why not let them?

"I just think that if the parents in my districts are willing to vote for a referendum to get more technology or whatever it happens to be, they ought to be able to," said Rep. John Benson, DFL-Minnetonka, sponsor of legislation to get rid of the referendum "cap."

Opponents argue that the measure would create two unequal school systems in Minnesota.

"I think it would be absolutely the wrong way to go," said Brad Lundell, executive director of Schools for Equity in Education, a consortium of districts whose low property values put more of a tax burden on homeowners, making it harder to get voter-approved tax levies. "It does not have a statewide reach. You're going to help a handful of districts and do nothing for the vast number of schoolchildren in Minnesota. ... We will oppose this with every fiber of our being."

"The whole idea is you get a similar education no matter where you are in the state," said Dennis Carlson, superintendent of Anoka-Hennepin schools, the state's largest district. "Now, we've got school districts fighting for survival."

For some of the districts supporting the measure, it's a good bet their voters would be willing to contribute more. The Hopkins and Edina districts, for instance, haven't been turned down on a levy request in recent memory. The St. Louis Park district is capped out at $1,866 per pupil in voter-approved levies. That contrasts with a district with more mixed referendum results such as St. Francis, which has $365 per pupil in voter-approved levies.

If St. Francis had St. Louis Park's success at the polls, it would translate into $7.5 million more in revenue per year. "There would be so many more things we could offer our kids if we had that," said superintendent Edward Saxton.

Proponents of scrapping the levy limit argue that it's all about local control. There's also another reason. Districts such as Minnetonka, Edina, Hopkins and St. Louis Park can boast some advantages other districts can't offer. That might be better test scores or more kids going to four-year colleges. Sometimes, it's generous course offerings. Hopkins schools, for instance, offer six levels of French, German and Spanish as well as scores of business and art courses.

In Minnetonka, unlike many other districts, finances are on sound footing. Superintendent Dennis Peterson noted that the school board had to make no cuts in this year's budget, and at least for now, is planning none for next year. District drama and music programs remain fully funded. That, he said, could change if the district is unable to find a new source of revenue.

Bob Mattison, whose two daughters graduated from Hopkins schools, said scrapping the cap is a high priority of the district legislation action coalition that he co-chairs.

"Our frustration as citizens is we don't have the option to even spend the amount of money we want to," said Mattison, a Golden Valley resident whose daughters attended Hopkins schools via open enrollment. "Specifically, what we're concerned about is, as time goes by, and if the state continues to fail to keep up with inflationary trends and enrollments continue to decline, we're going to have to make cuts year after year, and the quality of the programs is going to go down."

Mattison said he considered private schools for his daughters. But he figured that the Hopkins quality of education was as good as that offered by private schools, and tuition-free. Even with his girls graduated, he still wants to work to get the district more money.

"I don't think our kids should be penalized because of the situation in another district," he said.

Proponents of scrapping the levy cap have tried before and failed. Prospects look grim this year, as well. "In this case, rural and urban and some exurban districts will come together to oppose it, and there will be more of them than us," said Sen. Terri Bonoff, DFL-Minnetonka, and author of a Senate bill to get rid of the limit.