In normal circumstances, a news conference held by a state party as a fluff piece wouldn't earn a lot of attention. When Kansas House Republicans join together in the state capital to urge teachers to start teaching financial literacy, though, the only term that comes to mind is chutzpah.
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Kansas legislators and State Board of Education members are launching a campaign to encourage public schools to teach students financial literacy.
State school board members and members of the Kansas House Education Committee were having a ceremony Wednesday at the Statehouse.
They planned to sign a letter urging schools to teach financial literacy.
For some educators Kansas Republicans, a group that has led to the state being mired in a debt cycle, seem an odd choice for this advocacy.
Kansas Republicans urging financial literacy training in schools is something most of us can get behind - as a young man I took Home Economics to help encourage us how to handle the budget of a household in high school, and I'd recommend something similar to everyone.
Sometimes, though, it isn't the idea but the group that advocates that idea. Hearing from Kansas Republicans about the need for financial literacy made several present wonder if they had entered a strange alternate dimension, while in the same building Republicans were failing to assemble a budget that would get the state to the constitutionally required $0 sum balanced budget.
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"I think we're going to have to walk out with a balanced budget and if we are unwilling to address the tax problem then we're going to have to come forward with cuts. That will look rather ugly," Wagle said.
Sen. Les Donovan, a Wichita Republican and chairman of the Senate tax committee, said the objective was to take a fresh run Thursday at convincing the 11-member panel to approve a bill that raised taxes.
"We have to take a vote," he said. "When it gets to the floor, it's open for amendments. It's open for whatever."
He said he didn't expect support from two Democrats on the panel, but was surprised several GOP members had thrown up firm obstacles.
"I'm in favor of having the tax chairman meet at all hours until something happens," said Sen. Tom Arpke, a Salina Republican.
As Republicans fight amongst themselves, unable to come up with a budget that fills Kansas growing budget hole they are now urging a new directive for Kansas schools - teach financial literacy. This goal is of course possible because of how well funded Kansas schools are at the moment.
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Public education is on the rocks in a number of states across the country thanks to budget cutbacks, but few states are in as dire of straits as Kansas, where anger over the legislature’s starving of the schools has grown so great that even the waitstaff of restaurants are weighing in.
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As lawmakers work to erase a projected $800 million budget gap for the fiscal year starting July 1, at least eight school districts that saw their funding cut this year because of a greater-than-projected slide in state tax collections will begin shutting down before the scheduled end of classes. Dozens of others have eliminated or cut programs.
“We felt we didn’t have a choice,” said Janet Neufeld, superintendent of Twin Valley schools, which will end the academic year on Friday, 12 days early.
With schools closing early and projected debt mounting, nothing says irony like a room of Republican House Leadership urging schools put more resources to financial literacy.
Should students pass any of those programs, they might be able to come to the state house and teach a few elected members a thing or 800 million.