Here is part of a message I just got from someone who knows about the budget -- if we think we have problems in the schools right now, just wait:
"...it turns out that the Governor's special ed funding cuts are even more draconian than I had thought. Under current law, regular special funding will increase by 4.6% in FY 03 and later years and special ed excess cost funding will increase by 2% per year. These scheduled increases are defined in law as the "program growth factor." I had thought, incorrectly, that there was an inflation factor as well, but there is not. Although the governor's budget refers both to an inflation factor and a growth factor in special ed, they are one and the same. The Governor's budget reduces the program growth factor from the current 4.6% to 2.6% in FY 03 and to ZERO in subsequent years. It reduces the growth factor to ZERO FY 04 and subsequent years. Special ed funding would not grow at all in FY 04 and later years. It's even worse than we had originally thought. Diane Wiley Powderhorn _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
