Grading Jerry Brown’s Education Agenda
It’s the beginning of the new semester at San Diego City College where I work, so I thought this would be a good time to evaluate some of Jerry Brown’s bold moves on the educational front. In terms of funding, the passage of Proposition 30 has stopped much of the bleeding in schools and colleges across the state, but it still does not do enough to restore all that has been cut in recent years. Therefore, despite some very good news, challenges remain ahead.
Funding
On the revenue front, the Governor and the newly elected Democratic majority have signaled a cautionary tone on making the temporary nature of the upper income tax increases in Proposition 30 permanent or taking up other progressive revenue measures that might aid in totally restoring the funding levels of our once great education system.
Nonetheless, if we don’t want to wind up back in the desperate straights we’ve just escaped from, things like an extension of the taxes on the top 1%, a split roll on Proposition 13 (that would