State Senate wants deeper cuts in education : News-Record.com : Greensboro & the Triad's most trusted source for local news and analysis

RALEIGH (MCT) — Republican senators want to spend less on education next year than their House counterparts, a development that has Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue spitting mad.

Senate Republicans on Tuesday began public discussions of the changes they want to make to the $19.3 billion budget the House passed last week.

Senators responsible for working on the detailed education budget released a target for spending that is lower than the House plan. The Senate is looking to spend about $10.62 billion on K-12 public schools, community colleges and the UNC system, or about $40 million less than the House approved. The UNC system would get $87 million more out of the Senate, but community colleges and K-12 public schools would get less.

The community college budget target is about $21 million below the House budget, and the K-12 target is about $106 million lower than the House plan.

Senate leader Phil Berger said the Senate's budget total would be somewhat smaller than the House proposal. The goal is to have the state live within its means, he said, by keeping spending in line with revenues and eliminating the temporary 1-cent sales tax increase.

"Our goal is to do what we told the voters we were going to do," he said.

Republican legislators are trying to deal with a budget shortfall estimated at $1.9 billion to $2.5 billion. They have vowed to let expire a temporary sales tax increase and an income tax surcharge.

The Senate spending goals did not go over well with Democrats, most of whom thought the House budget was bad.

Perdue spokeswoman Chrissy Pearson described Perdue's reaction as "shocked, disappointed, disgusted."

"It clearly moves North Carolina backward," she said. "It would put us close to if not dead last in the country in our education investment. And that is not a place the Tar Heel state can afford to be in and still expect to lead the South in being one of the most progressive, one of the most innovative, one of the best states in which to live and work."

Senate Minority Leader Martin Nesbitt said the education cuts, on top of cuts in previous years and the loss of federal stimulus money is "just a death blow."

Republicans are making changes to a "state that's fundamentally progressive and they're trying to take us to one that's cheap," Nesbitt said.

Perdue proposed a budget that would keep part of the sales tax increase. Nesbitt said the state could avoid deep cuts by extending the 1-cent increase another year.

North Carolina is 46th in the nation in per pupil spending on public education, according to the National Education Association, a teachers union.

"We are destroying the public school system of this state," he said. "Period."

igliigli

May 11, 2011 - 7:04 am EDT

The UNC System's response to the cuts is to waste additional hundreds of millions more on sports. Financial insanity.

DaveW

May 11, 2011 - 9:44 am EDT

I believe that igliigli fails to understand that very little money from the state level is spent on athletics.The vast majority comes from the local level. In the case of either UNC system or Community College sports the money mostly comes from donations from boosters on the individual school level.Even if the state cut all funds at their level allocated for sports it would not solve the budget crisis since that money is such a small percentage anyway.

May 11, 2011 - 1:00 pm EDT

Suggest you look the profit and loss statments filed every year with the NCAA.
The Schools spend hundreds of millions of taxpayer and student money.
College sports the biggest taxpayer and student rip-off around.

77 Hornet

May 11, 2011 - 7:17 am EDT

igliigli
Can't you find something meaningful to gripe about? Everytime there is a story on school athletics you chime in. You should really get a life.

batshalom

May 11, 2011 - 7:40 am EDT

College sports generate money for the universities. It's not that the UNC system spends money on it for no reason. I disagree with a lot of the things that go on in the universities, but sports money makes sense.

That reply is not the reason I am posting a comment, however. I am posting a comment because I am in a state of disbelief that the state on NC would keep taking money out of education when it has already been devastated. How embarrassing to be a resident. How scary to worry about my children's ability to compete for college seats or jobs. I have great sympathy for the public school teachers, school resource personnel, and college faculty and staff who WILL continue educating our young people despite these hardships. For most of them, educating our children comes before personal gain. It would be a good model for our legislative representatives to follow.

The government is making a mockery of its own state and constituents. If you want the state to live within its means I say to you: find a less critical coffer to bleed. I am thoroughly disgusted, frustrated, but ridiculously hopeful that someone in Raleigh will come to his or her senses before this travesty puts another negative indelible mark on our state and on the South in general.

May 11, 2011 - 5:38 pm EDT

I agree that cutting education money is a bad idea but cutting sports would save hundreds of millions every year. Sports do NOT make money for the Schools; they lose money.

Bilbo

May 11, 2011 - 8:04 am EDT

..WAY TO GO PHIL BERGER,...unemployment is already among the highest in the state in your home county...Rockingham....and now you want to mput more folk out on the street....decorum dictates that we can't say about you here what needs to be said...although going back and watching the scene about the letter the school marm wrote in the film "Blazing Saddles"...may be a good place for you to start....

copper1

May 11, 2011 - 8:22 am EDT

As a former state employee our elected officials can't see the forest for the trees. There is 100's of millions of dollars wasted by the DOC on pet projects that do nothing. Their payroll is bloated well beyond what is needed, yet continues to spend money as if there is no tomorrow. Spending $900K on 3 backhoes when they have 2 parked at the warehouse is crazy. They are racing against time to spend $250 million dollars to build new prison that don't have funding for staff or inmates. Just check the state employee web page and look at the number of openings that they are seeking to fill with more dead weight. If anyone is Raleigh really cared about reducing the budget they would hire private auditors in many of these departments and print the results.

tomturket

May 11, 2011 - 10:01 am EDT

Do you mean DOT? The biggest money pit in NC. Also the biggest Democrat Party pit in NC, so it shows how stupid the Republicans are for not cutting it by a whopping amount.

May 11, 2011 - 12:00 pm EDT

No, the DOC (department of corrections) is the largest department in the state budget. Many people overlook this group because they believe it's all about incarcerating a prisoner. However, they create pet projects listed as "rehab of inmates" so the elected officials will sign off. Most offer little or no value to the taxpayer or the inmate, but generate a huge windfall for the dead weight. If a state audit was completed by an outside group, the taxpayer would come unglued.

May 12, 2011 - 2:49 pm EDT

Thanks. Thats good info. So they could cut both DOC and DOT and then they would have a surplus of money to spend on worthwhile projects like education. Thanks again.

rc378

May 11, 2011 - 8:40 am EDT

phil berger states the gop is doing what they told voters/taxpayers they were going to do - somehow i don't recall their saying the plan was to plummet our state to 50th place in expenditures per pupil, which is what they are trying to do. regardless of whether the public believes education costs too much or not, i cannot imagine anyone desiring north carolina to be at the very bottom of expenditures per student. we, as a state, are better than that and our children deserve better.

Abruti

May 11, 2011 - 8:59 am EDT

The problem is the percentage of education costs that are spent on administration and non-critical programs. It's not teacher pay, assistant pay, etc. Unfortunately, our education system will sacrifice good teachers and keep the fat.

goodtimes

May 11, 2011 - 9:12 am EDT

The fat is where the flavor is; The fat provides the kick-backs and the vig throughout the system-from the food distribution to school supplies and eventually all the way up through the administrators to the politicians. Food for thought.

May 11, 2011 - 9:56 am EDT

Why is it they want to spend so much more on UNC and so much less on K-12? Sort of getting the cart before the horse. Can't get to college if not properly educated in K-12

ganthes

May 11, 2011 - 10:00 am EDT

Republicans need to get real. We are NOT going to ATTRACT EMPLOYERS to our state by cutting our education budget. We need to offer an educated workforce and a decent place to raise a family or they will NOT move their businesses here.

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