Daley champions state school funding reform

May back income, sales tax increases

Associated Press

CHICAGO - Mayor Richard M. Daley challenged state lawmakers Thursday to reform Illinois' education funding system to take the burden off property taxpayers and reduce inequities between rich and poor districts.

"This is the year," Daley said at Prosser Career Academy, a public high school on the city's near northwest side. "We don't need a new study. I don't need somebody telling me all about education. Basically, we need funding. You need money. It's as simple as that."

Mayors in the Chicago area are coming together to lay out a reform proposal, Daley said. The Metropolitan Mayors Caucus, a group of 272 Chicago-area mayors, will have a plan ready in February, he said.

Daley mentioned a bill sponsored by state Sen. James Meeks, D-Chicago, as a place to start. Meeks' bill would increase the state income tax rate to provide $2.7 billion in property tax relief and expand the sales tax base to include consumer services such as haircuts, lawn care and health club fees.

Meeks welcomed the potential support of Daley and the Chicago-area mayors. Noting that Daley did not actively support his bill when he first proposed it in 2005, Meeks added, "It's not late at all. This is the perfect time."

Elgin Mayor Edward Schock, representing the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus, said the state's "over-reliance on the property tax has resulted in an education system of haves and have-nots" as the state's share of school funding has dwindled and some school districts have turned to property taxpayers to make up the difference.

"In our view, the system of funding public education in the state is broken," Schock said. "We can't have a system that penalizes students because of their address."

Eden Martin, president of the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, said raising the state income tax and expanding the sales taxes to services are good ideas, but the money should not be used in a so-called "tax swap" for statewide property tax relief.

Last month, the Civic Committee issued a report titled "Facing Facts," which says the state is heading for "financial implosion" and must take action, including raising taxes, to meet its current commitments to pensions and retiree health plans.

"We agree with the mayor that state financing of K-12 education at the foundation level is a commitment the state has made and which it should keep," Martin said. "If the state does that, it will mean more money for the Chicago schools, which we support subject to a condition."

That condition is removing a cap on the number of charter schools in Chicago. Charter schools encourage competition and academic excellence, Martin said.

Daley took control of the Chicago schools in 1995 to try to fix the troubled system, which had been plagued by low test scores and high dropout rates. School officials say dropout rates have since plunged and test scores have shot up. But critics say Daley has closed schools without community or parent input and displaced thousands of low-income students.

Ralph Martire, executive director of the bipartisan Center for Tax and Budget Accountability, said Daley's push for funding reform in 2007 comes from frustration.

"He's called for the state to increase its share of school funding for years," Martire said. "Every year he gets more frustrated when he doesn't get results. ... When he gets to the point his patience is exhausted, he wants to push the solution."

State Rep. Roger Eddy, R-Hutsonville, who also is a school superintendent, said reform that raises taxes may face opposition from Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who has his own plan for selling or leasing the state lottery to raise money for schools.

"If the mayor is looking for a place to start, the biggest obstacle is the governor's office," Eddy said. "The mayor's absolutely right, though. The over-reliance on property taxes is an antiquated system. ... If it takes an income tax increase, it takes an income tax increase."