CSBA suit charges California has shackled local school districts with billions in unfunded mandates
According to Courthouse News Service, The California School Boards Association’s (CSBA) legal wing, Education Legal Alliance (ELA), has filed suit in state court against California, the Commission on State Mandates, state Controller John Chiang and state Finance Director Ana Mantosantos, alleging that they have saddled local school districts with billions of dollars of expenses accrued in carrying out state imposed programs. ELA’s suit charges that even though a 1979 amendment to the state constitution “prevent[s] the state from forcing programs on local governments, including school districts, without paying for them,” California has been “deferring” reimbursements for years, budgeting only $1,000 per mandate while “carrying the remainder of the reimbursement obligation as ‘debt’ owed to local governments, including school districts.”
The suit contends that a 2010 report from the Legislative Analyst Office (LAO) exposes the extent of the budgetary dishonesty, which “estimated the
South Dakota Supreme Court hears arguments in school finance suit
The South Dakota Supreme Court heard arguments in a high-stakes challenge to the state’s system for funding schools, as lawmakers consider severe school aid cuts to balance the budget, reports the Associated Press inEducation Week. A group of parents has sued the state, arguing that rural schools don’t get enough state aid to provide an adequate education. A judge ruled in 2009 in favor of the state, which says that courts cannot force the legislature to spend money or change education policy.
During arguments, an attorney for the parents said rural schools are penalized because they have fewer students than districts in Sioux Falls. The state
