An education funding reform bill passed the Illinois House despite major reservations from Republicans, with many House members, including Rep. Steven Andersson (R-Geneva), saying they found the measure overly Chicago-centric.
“How do you justify that we are moving so much money through changes in the system into one school district, into Chicago, to the detriment of others?” Andersson asked the bill’s sponsor, Rep. William Davis (D-Homewood).
Davis replied that regardless of how much money Chicago receives, it is not technically taking money from other districts because no school district loses money under the bill.
Andersson disagreed.
“With this iteration, we know that if you’re taking money from the ‘pot,’ so to speak – if it’s going to Chicago – it’s being taking away from those other districts," he said. "It has to be mathematically. There can only be so much.”
Senate Bill 1 is an education funding reform bill that Davis said would move Illinois from worst school funding system in the country to the most envied. He said the bill would invest tax dollars in best practices that enhance student achievement and tailor funding to address each unique school district. It would also direct new funding to districts “furthest away from having adequate resources to educate their kids,” he said.
While Andersson commended the bill for focusing on students, he found it troubling that it so heavily relies on new funding.
“The concepts are good," he said. "We are working towards something, but quite frankly, this just isn’t soup yet. Perhaps the most important thing is that this depends on extra money. New money. We don’t have that money. We don’t have a budget yet. This should be part of the budget discussion, but it can’t be run as a standalone in my opinion. We’re just not quite there yet.”
SB1 was also approved by the Senate and was sent to Gov. Bruce Rauner's desk.
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