— from Governor Jay Inslee’s Communications Office —
Statement from Gov. Inslee on today’s Supreme Court order regarding McCleary
“Today, the state of Washington has been held in contempt for failing to provide the Supreme Court with the education funding plan it has ordered. This unprecedented action by the Supreme Court is a critical moment in our history. No one should be surprised, yet no one should minimize the court’s order. I urged lawmakers to act this year and agreed with the court that we must do more to adequately fund education, which I believe is both a constitutional and moral obligation. The Legislature now must act before it adjourns next year or face the yet to be determined sanctions.
“If we are to succeed now, we will need the help of everyone in Washington state, not just 147 lawmakers, as we rise to the challenge to avoid the court’s pending sanctions. My budget team has been hard at work crafting a plan to submit to the 2015 Legislature. I look forward to input from all Washingtonians and, most importantly, action from the Legislature.”
**If you are reading theOrcasonian for free, thank your fellow islanders. If you would like to support theOrcasonian CLICK HERE to set your modestly-priced, voluntary subscription. Otherwise, no worries; we’re happy to share with you.**
It’s about time…
One of the first actions the legislature needs to take is to revamp the levy restriction that restricts School Districts from receiving money that the voters have authorized. This is money, already approved by the voters, that cannot be accessed because of a poorly executed concept of funding fairness. For many small districts like ours this is what keeps non-mandated but valuable programs from receiving the necessary money to flourish.
The unfortunate part of this most recent ruling is that it will set up a constitutional battle within the state that will only bog down the process. Hopefully the legislature will step up and move the process along without further delay.