Study recommending $2 billion for Kansas schools not ‘of much value,’ lawmaker says

A Republican leader says a study that recommends up to $2 billion more for Kansas schools is of no value to him.

"I don’t think the study is going to be of much value to the policymakers,” Senate Majority Leader Jim Denning, R-Overland Park, said Tuesday. “I think it was very academic and I think everybody’s in agreement: It pointed to no policy that we could actually implement, nor did they have any implementation recommendations."

"So I’m not happy with the study because I don’t think it brings any value to the process."

The Kansas Supreme Court has ruled funding for schools is unconstitutionally inadequate. The court has given the Legislature until April 30 to respond.

Republican legislative leaders, including Denning, approved hiring Texas professor Lori Taylor in December to conduct the study at a cost of more than $200,000. She released her results late last week.

Many lawmakers have expressed shock at her recommendations. She recommends a $1.7 billion to $2 billion increase on the high end and a $450 million boost on the low end. The study suggests phasing in those increases over five years.

The high-end increases would boost academic performance, the study said. The report predicts all funding levels would help the state achieve a 95 percent graduation rate. It’s currently at 85.7 percent.

"Hopefully, we’ve learned our lesson and any studies in the future will be for recommendations on certain pieces of policy that we may consider. But putting our appropriation process into the hands of somebody that isn’t part of the body, I think we’ve seen the result of that," Denning told fellow Republican senators during a gathering to discuss the study.

Senate President Susan Wagle, R-Wichita, has called the study’s recommendations unaffordable. Other Republican lawmakers have criticized or dismissed it as well.

Sen. Ty Masterson, R-Andover, said the Legislature now appears to be back where it started.

"It’s just ridiculous," he said.

Republican leaders had hoped the study could provide evidence they could bring to the Supreme Court to show that current school funding levels are appropriate. It’s unclear what role it will play in the court case.

Attorneys for a group of school districts – including Wichita – that are suing for more funding have previously suggested lawmakers should boost spending by $600 million. It’s unclear whether they would be able to now use the study to seek an even higher amount.

Some lawmakers have been more receptive to the study’s results. Rep. Steve Crum, D-Haysville, said the study’s results are not what legislative leaders wanted to see.

"Leadership in the House and Senate refuse to accept the idea that we must substantially increase funding," Crum said on Twitter.

No concrete proposal has emerged publicly about how to respond to the court. Lawmakers are under pressure to come up with a solution quickly; they traditionally take off much of April.

This story was originally published March 20, 2018 at 6:07 PM with the headline "Study recommending $2 billion for Kansas schools not ‘of much value,’ lawmaker says."