Coalition of Kentucky school districts drops finance lawsuit
A coalition of Kentucky school districts is dropping a lawsuit designed to force state lawmakers to spend more money on schools. The Council for Better Education (CBE) filed a suit in 2003 against the state, claiming funding of Kentucky's schools is "inadequate and arbitrarily determined by the legislature." However, a state court in Franklin County ruled in February 2007 that it was up to the legislature to decide how to dole out the money, not the courts. CBE’s motion for the court to reconsider its ruling was denied in May 2007. CBE had been considering an appeal, but instead decided to drop its suit. Even so, CBE President Roger Marcum, vows the group "will continue to lead efforts for adequate resources" for state students and could seek further legal action down the road if conditions in schools do not improve. CBE filed a similar lawsuit in 1985, resulting in the state's school-funding system being declared unconstitutional. That ruling led to the sweeping Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990. While that case focused on funding inequities, the latest lawsuit focused on whether districts were receiving adequate funding to teach every student the skills and knowledge necessary to meet Kentucky's education standards. There are 164 school districts of a total 175 that belong to CBE. The suit claimed Kentucky schools were underfunded from between $1.08 billion to $1.2 billion in the 2003-2004 school year, and similarly underfunded in other years. CBE’s 2003 suit sought a court order directing lawmakers to allocate hundreds of millions more dollars for public education. The state spends about $4.1 billion a year on education.
Maysville Ledger Independent
By Associated Press
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[Editor’s Note: The court decision is summarized below.]
[NSBA School Law pages on Young v. Williams]