LANSING – State Representatives Lisa Brown (D-West Bloomfield) and Vicki Barnett (D-Farmington Hills) today criticized the latest political maneuverings between Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop (R-Rochester) and the Governor that has led to another proposed cut to schools. The legislators said the time for political brinkmanship has long passed and it is time for both parties to work together to protect schools, kids and our future.
"The education of our kids should not be used as bargaining chips in political games between the Senate Majority Leader and the Governor," said Brown, whose schools would see more than $10.2 million in cuts as a result of the Governor's veto to parts of the School Aid Budget on Monday. "These cuts are devastating to our schools and our students' future."
As budget negotiations continue to drag on past the Oct. 1 deadline, Bishop has delayed sending the Governor all the departmental budgets until today, while the Governor is vetoing funding for the schools in order to get the Senate to come to the bargaining table.
As part of the Governor's veto, so-called 20j schools across the state would face $52 million in cuts. Those cuts come on top of the $165 per pupil cut already included in the School Aid Budget.
"The people of Michigan deserve better from their elected leaders than government shutdowns and political bickering," said Barnett, whose school districts stand to lose nearly $7.5 million due to the veto. "We've got to put an end to this cycle of political brinkmanship that continues to threaten our children and schools. If we took measures to increase accountability in Lansing like docking lawmakers' pay for failing to balance the budget on time, our schools would not be placed at risk of even more devastating cuts."
Schools in Oakland County that would be impacted include: Walled Lake Consolidated School District, $4.7 million; Troy Public School District, $2.9 million; Farmington Public School District, $2.2 million; Northville Public Schools, $2.2 million; West Bloomfield School District, $1.7 million; Novi Community Schools, $1.7 million; School District of Royal Oak, $1.5 million; Southfield Public School District, $1.3 million; Avondale School District, $1.1 million; Birmingham City School District, more than $950,000; Bloomfield Hills School District, nearly $625,000; Clarenceville School District, nearly $575,000; and Lamphere Public Schools, nearly $440,000.