Letter to the Editor: District 99 Stands to Lose $3 Million in State Funding

By Dr. Mark McDonald, Superintendent of District 99

A proposed bill in the Illinois legislature is projected to reduce the amount of state funding Community High School District 99 receives by 77 percent. If the bill, Senate Bill 16 (SB16), is passed by the House of Representatives later this fall, the district would lose over $3 million per year, representing about $596 per student. The bill was passed by the Illinois Senate on May 27, 2014.

“If SB16 passes as it is written, it would have a significant impact on our ability to continue providing quality programs and services to students,” says District 99 Superintendent Dr. Mark McDonald. “I am deeply concerned about this issue, and hope that everyone in our community will take the time to learn more about what’s at stake and contact their legislators.”

Last July, a committee of state legislators was charged with recommending ways to improve public education funding in Illinois, which has remained unchanged since 1997. The result of the task force was the creation of Senate Bill 16 (SB16).

If enacted into law, SB16 will make sweeping changes in how the state funds education. Generally, school districts with higher assessed property values like District 99, its associated elementary districts and others in DuPage County will receive much less state funding. Other districts will receive much more in state funding.

Under SB16, all but one school district in DuPage County will lose state funding, a total of $140 million. Of the 42 school districts in DuPage County, District 99 is 6th on the list in terms of those that will experience the largest percentage reduction in state funding. (See the impact on all DuPage County school districts here; see the impact across the State of Illinois here.)

SB16 does not increase the level of education funding, but rather it changes the way in which limited state funding is distributed among school districts. SB 16 is modeled after an effort in Massachusetts. Their General Assembly provided $1 billion in new money. There is no new money in SB16. This legislation is a redistribution of current resources.

“We believe the solution is not to take from some to give to others, but rather for the State of Illinois to fully fund education, rather than ranking 50th in the nation in education funding,” says McDonald. “We hope people will take the time to contact their State Representative to voice their opinion.”

Residents can find legislative contact information at http://www.ieanea.org/legislative/find-your-legislators/.
See “The Potential Impact of Senate Bill 16 on District 99” at www.csd99.org/SB16 for additional information.