Cuts to school funding at the state level largely go unrecognized by voters, who tend to view schools as a local function and hold their locally elected school board members accountable.
Those school boards, under increasing pressure to maintain services and pay their bills, are turning to reserve funds to make up for both the decrease in property taxes and in state support.
But is that good policy?
According to the AJC:
Records show over the past 15 years, school board members around the metro area have pulled hundreds of millions of dollars from savings to stave off severe cuts. It’s a trend that worsened after the recession began in 2007, when foreclosures and falling property values cut into property tax revenue districts rely on. Some districts, such as DeKalb, now have no savings left. Cobb, Fulton and Gwinnett are down to just
