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34 Child. Legal Rts. J. 122 (2013-2014)
Opposing Views: The Divide in Public Education Funding - Property Tax Revenue

handle is hein.journals/clrj34 and id is 127 raw text is: Opposing Views: The Divide in Public Education Funding - Property Tax Revenue By Magda Derisma In the United States Supreme Court's decision in San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez, the Court made it clear that education is not an implicit or explicit right protected by the United States Constitution. Although education is not constitutionally protected, it does not exist without safeguards. The Tenth Amendment to the Constitution implicitly reserves the power of educational decision making to each respective state. As a result, each state has a provision within their state's constitution that requires an equitable or ample public education system. Legislators of each state are given authority to decide how their education system will be maintained. A majority of state legislators have decided that public education is primarily a local expenditure that should be funded by local property tax revenue. Nevertheless, the decision to largely fund public education through property tax revenue is one that is often challenged. Courts, education reformists, and legislatures are divided on the issue. Proponents of public education property tax funding view property taxes as an effective funding source for state and local governments. Opponents argue that this type of funding creates disparities in the quality of education that is available to children living in poor communities. Proponents of Public Education Property Tax Funding Proponents argue that property taxes are the most appropriate revenue source for the large expenditure of public education. In support of this, proponents turn to an analysis of federal, state, and local funding sources to ground their argument. To begin, public education is a huge local expenditure. Less than ten percent of education funding comes from the federal government. The large remaining balance is left for the states to fund. This balance is paid through potentially unstable state and local taxes. Similarly, proponents argue that yearly school budgets and funding sources need to be stable and predictable so that teacher placements and educational services are not interrupted. Using state taxes to fund public education has the potential to create funding insecurities. To begin, state tax revenues are largely generated from income and sales taxes. Income and sales tax revenue are not stable sources and have the propensity to drop in times of recession. Local property taxes on the other hand are more stable despite changes that occur in economic conditions. The property tax base is seen as being less mobile than the income and sales tax base. In addition, proponents note that there are a few states that do not collect sales or income taxes. Especially in those states it would be a difficult task to fund a public education system without the use of property tax revenue. The argument is also made that the loss of local property taxes reduces civic engagement. Homeowners with school age children in public schools usually have a greater incentive to vote on issues that relate to public education when their property taxes are used to fund public education. Moreover, property-rich districts, districts that

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