The editors of the Charlotte Observer want county commissioners to pony up some money for CMS. No surprise there. But take notice of this bit of spin:
Some say CMS is focusing on the wrong target. County commissioner Bill James said in an email that school officials “should be putting the squeeze on the group that is cutting their funds (i.e., N.C. lawmakers and the federal government).”
Actually, the federal government isn’t cutting funds. That money was a one-time boost to help struggling states during the recession. Policymakers knew those federal dollars would end after two years.
[snip]
So we echo the drumbeat coming from the public in poll after poll, and from numerous advocacy groups: Lawmakers should keep a 1-penny sales tax, due to expire on July 1. That would bring enough dollars to avoid the most drastic cuts. A coalition of groups has already launched an “Our children are worth a penny” campaign. Lawmakers should listen.
Let’s review. The editors give the federal government (i.e., the Obama administration) a pass for allowing stimulus funds to expire. But they refuse to extend the same courtesy to the Republican leadership of the General Assembly who plan to discard another one-time boost, the “temporary” 1-cent sales tax. Didn’t policymakers know that those sales tax dollars would end after two years, as well?
Furthermore, if school systems knew that two sources of revenue – sales tax and stimulus funds – would expire at the end of the 2010-11 school year, why are they so unprepared to deal with the cuts? The answer is simple. They gambled. Education leaders believed that lawmakers would not allow the stimulus and temporary sales tax funds to expire. So, for two years, school districts conducted business as usual, rather than preparing for the inevitable loss of revenue. That is inexcusable.
