After 40+ towns defeated school budgets on Town Meeting Day this week, the message must ring clearly in Montpelier: Act 60 is a failure both as a funding mechanism and as an incentive to increase the quality of our public schools. The data I've seen reported is the bill for K-12 public education in Vermont has risen from $600 Million to nearly $ 1 Billion in a half a decade years while enrollment has declined and quality is flat.
This unsustainable trajectory leads to fiscal carnage. Our children aren't benefited in any substantial way, though in some towns who have spent substantially more on education than before Act 60, I'm sure some improvements can be demonstrated.
Governor Douglas is right to call for control of expenditures in any replacement or Act 60. Re-crafting Act 60 into something that works for both students and taxpayers must be the Legislature's highest priority. Failure to deliver on this difficult challenge should be considered failure by the people of Vermont.
Since local control of school funding and performance is a myth, perhaps it's time for one 'Vermont school district.'
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