Pawlenty critical of DFL pupil funding proposal
Governor Tim Pawlenty says a DFL education funding proposal lacks credibility.
Legislators announced a new plan Monday that would raise per-pupil funding by nearly 50 percent. Pawlenty says DFLers are calling their proposal a "miracle" because they're hoping for a way to pay for it. The governor says the proposal is problematic for two reasons.
"Number one it lacks credibility because they offered no way to pay for it. And number two, while they tweak a bunch formulas, they don't reform education. They don't have any accountability for results. It's just tweaking a bunch of finance formulas, which is interesting and important, but it does very little for actual reform and education," said Pawlenty.
The DFL proposal would also change the funding formula based on geographical differences and English language learners. Lawmakers will discuss the proposal later this week on Thursday, and plan to hold hearings on it throughout Minnesota in the coming months.
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