MSEA, MABE, and PSSAM release blueprint for fixing maintenance of effort
Contact:
Adam Mendelson, 443-433-3630
January 30, 2012, Annapolis, MD…A
cross-section of education advocates released a blueprint for how to fix the
state’s broken maintenance of effort (MOE) law, which is currently putting $2.6
billion in local education funding at risk.
The Maryland State Education
Association, the Maryland Association of Boards of Education, and the Public
School Superintendents Association of Maryland released the blueprint, calling on
Governor O’Malley and the General Assembly to adopt comprehensive reform to
protect the student programs and crucial services in danger of being cut if MOE
is not fixed.
The blueprint reflects a number of
important principles for reform, including:
- Creating
predictability and a consistent funding floor without a permanent funding
ceiling
- Accurate
accounting of MOE
- Preserving
school funding for education rather than retirement costs
- Accountability
and a mandatory waiver process
- Increased
flexibility for county governments
- Fairness
- Assistance
in finding and applying new revenue
“Students, educators, and parents
are depending on our elected officials to protect the critical investments that
we’ve made in our schools by fixing MOE,” said MSEA President Clara Floyd.
“The Maryland Association of Boards
of Education (MABE) urges immediate passage of legislation to address and
correct serious deficiencies in MOE,” said MABE President Gary Bauer. “Boards
of education are alarmed that local funding is no longer subject to a
meaningful funding floor, and how this impacts our efforts to sustain success
in the classroom and the futures of our students. We deeply appreciate the
commitment of the governor and General Assembly to ‘hold the line’ on state
funding and fully anticipate broad support for legislation requiring counties
to do the same.”
“Local school system superintendents
are appreciative that the General Assembly leadership has identified ensuring
local jurisdictions’ adequate funding of its schools as a top priority in the
2012 session,” said Public School Superintendents of Maryland Executive
Director Carl Roberts. “School funding in Maryland is a unique
partnership that requires all parties to collaborate for the common good of our
students and for the future of all Marylanders. Maintenance of effort
must be reinforced so we all may move forward in successfully addressing the
significant challenges confronting public education in Maryland.”
Strong majorities of Marylanders
back a maintenance of effort fix. According to a poll conducted by Grove
Insight Opinion Research in June of 300 Maryland voters (margin of error of +/-
5.7%), 69 percent opposed the changes made to maintenance of effort during the
2011 legislative session that allowed local jurisdictions to reduce their per
pupil funding levels. Fifty-two percent strongly opposed these changes.
Sixty-three percent of respondents felt that the state and counties bore equal
responsibility to fund our schools.
The blueprint is available at www.marylandeducators.org/MOE.