Transcript Wheat Ridge
October 24, 2013
50 cents
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourwheatridgenews.com
Jefferson County, Colorado • Volume 30, Issue 18
Forum supports amendment Hispanic leaders back education ballot question By Vic Vela
vvela@ourcoloradonews.com Hispanic leaders came together in Denver on Oct. 21 to urge folks to support a school finance tax hike that they say will greatly impact Latino students. Colorado Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia headlined a forum at El Museo de las Americas, where he touted the highlights of Amendment 66, a statewide ballot measure that will create $950 million in new taxes annually to fund an overhaul of the state’s school finance overhaul. The money would be used to implement reforms that were put in place earlier
this year by the Democrat-led Legislature. The taxes would fund full-day kindergarten, preschool for at-risk youth and provide more resources for school programs, including those that directly impact English language learners. Garcia, a Democrat, said that the tax hike — which will have a greater impact on tax payers with higher incomes — is a small price to pay to ensure that Colorado remains one of the most highly educated states in the country. “We’re going to go from the second most well-educated state to the first, and lot of those kids that will help us get there will be a lot of our Latino kids,” Garcia said. Growing numbers of English language learners and children living in poverty in counties like Adams and Jefferson would get more funding under Amendment 66.
Both Jefferson County Public Schools and the Adams 12 Five Star School district would receive a 14 percent funding increase, if the measure passes. The districts would also see similar per pupil funding increases. Adams 12 would go from a per-pupil funding base of $6,463 to $7,076, a 9.5 percent increase, while Jeffco would see its per-pupil funding increase from $6,486 to $7,112, a 9.7 percent raise. Amendment 66 would raise taxes on all Colorado taxpayers. It would raise income taxes to 5 percent on everyone earning $75,000 or less. Those who earn over that amount would pay 5 percent on the first $75,000 in taxable income and 5.9 percent on taxable income above $75,000. Colorado’s current income tax rate is a flat 4.63 percent, regardless of income
level. Guillermo “Bill” Vidal, who briefly served as Denver mayor and who currently is the CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro Denver, said that his chamber board supports Amendment 66, regardless of the price tag. “For a business group to support a tax increase is an unusual thing,” he said. Critics say the ballot measure only throws more money at a bureaucratic school system, and that the new formula does not have enough reform or transparency to be effective. Opponents also blast Amendment 66 as a huge tax increase on all Colorado taxpayers at a time when they could least afford it. Not a single Republican voted for the legislation that is tied to Amendment 66, Senate Bill 213.
Amendment 66 What’s in it for Jeffco? Precise funding for the district is difficult to nail down By Vic Vela
vvela@ourcoloradonews.com It is widely accepted that if voters approve Amendment 66 on Nov. 5, the measure will pump at least $71 million of new funding into Jefferson County Public Schools. After that, who knows? There are a number of complexities tied the school finance overhaul ballot question, which makes it difficult for supporters to articulate a “bottom line” dollar figure to uneasy voters. At the same, it’s not uncommon to hear opponents discount nuance when talking about Amendment 66’s involved funding structure, often citing funding percentages that are probably worst case scenario for Jeffco. If passed, the measure would create $950 million in new taxes initially and about $1 billion in 2015 to enact major changes to the state’s school finance formula. The measure would fund fullday kindergarten, preschool for at-risk youth and would provide more resources for English language learners, special education students and children who are in gifted and talented programs. Additionally, the measure aims to reduce class sizes and would reform per-pupil funding statewide in a more equitable fashion, proponents argue. But the overhaul comes with a hefty price tag. Amendment 66 would raise taxes on all Colorado
Classes like the one that Edgewater Elementary School dual-language teacher Lupe Marquez instructs are expected to receive more funding under Amendment 66. Photo by Vic Vela taxpayers. The two-tiered proposal would raise income taxes to 5 percent on everyone earning $75,000 or less. Those who earn over that amount would pay 5 percent on the first $75,000 in taxable income and 5.9 percent on taxable income above $75,000. Colorado’s current income tax rate is a flat 4.63 percent, regardless of income level. But just how much of those tax dollars will end up going to Jeffco schools is a question that nobody can answer at this time. Amend-
POSTAL ADDRESS
ment 66 proponents acknowledge that taxpayers in Jefferson County will not see a 100-percent return on investment, meaning that a good portion of their tax dollars will go to students in other school districts. That’s a key fact that opponents often latch on to when arguing against the amendment. But supporters say that’s the price of doing business when the goal is to have adequate and equitable funding for all children across the state. “This is not just about Jefferson County,” said state Rep. Sue Schafer, D-Wheat Ridge, an Amendment 66 supporter. “I’m looking out for the good of the whole state. We may not get all of the money back, but why not have a generous attitude?”
Total funding will vary
If voters pass Amendment 66, it would restore school dollars
back to 2009 levels, before the state cut about $1 billion in funding during the economic downturn of that period. Amendment 66 would bring $71 million in new revenue to the Jeffco school district, which is currently the largest school district in the state. That breaks down to $7,112 per pupil, which would mean a 9.7 percent increase over the $6,486 that the current funding system allows. About $33 million of the spending from new revenue would be mandated, most of it earmarked to support full-day kindergarten and preschool programs for at-risk students. Roughly $20 million of the mandated dollars would provide additional funding to area schools that receive federal funding and that have large numbers of children who are eligible for free lunch programs. Much of the money that Jeffco
schools with high “at-risk” populations receive would be spent at their own discretion. “We have smart principals and smart schools, and they’ll use the money appropriately,” said Jefferson County Public Schools Superintendent Cindy Stevenson. “They could hire another teacher, have more technology, or bring in more tutoring, whatever.” As for the rest of the $71 million, about $38 million would be up to the district to determine how the money is spent. After that, Stevenson said that Jeffco has the potential of bringing in an additional $31 million into the district by way of other types of funding that will depend on legislative action and the amount of tax revenue that is actually collected by the state. That includes a potential for an additional $18 million in special education funding. State Sen. Andy Kerr, D-Lakewood, a member of the Legislature’s Senate Education Committee, is a teacher with the district’s 21st Century Virtual Academy, an online middle and secondary school. Kerr, a proponent of Amendment 66, points to another area of funding that the district should expect to see as a result the measure — a chunk of a $100 million education innovation grant program, where teachers and administrators would be able to apply for education project funds. “If we’re funded on a per capita basis, and Jeffco is about 10 percent of the state, we would get 10 percent of that,” Kerr said. “That’s $10 million.”
What opponents say
Proponents believe that Amendment 66 could end up
Amendment continues on Page 12
Printed on recycled newsprint. Please recycle this copy.