Wake commissioners have been generous on school funding

In a way, the current dispute between Wake County commissioners and school board members is a productive one. Both boards are strong supporters of the schools, obviously. Both want to do more for the schools in terms of funding. Almost all are Democrats on a similar philosophical wavelength.

The fuss is about, of course, money. The school board wants a record $45.2 million increase in its budget to apply toward entirely virtuous things: more counselors and social workers, raising pay for bus drivers, answering all the needs that come with growth in the state’s largest school system.

Commissioners, through the budget of county manager Jim Hartmann, are willing to boost funding by $16 million, and the manager notes that the school system habitually spends less than what it has budgeted, and so should use $21 million in unspent local money likely to be left over at the end of this month.

Commissioners also have to consider just how many tax hikes the county’s residents will tolerate, even though polls show those residents strongly support public schools. But under Hartmann’s budget – with the schools getting that $16 million more – property taxes would increase for the fourth year in a row.

The commissioners – elected to a majority in a Democratic sweep of four Republicans who constantly fought with the schools and held the county back on advancing transit options – have to be aware that county residents may be starting to look more skeptically at school spending, particularly the fact that the schools always seem to have money left over. While reserves are good for emergencies, the county’s own reserves could, of course, be applied to helping the schools if need be.

School advocates worry that the commissioners’ hesitancy to fully back all that the schools have requested is a dire sign. Yevonne Brannon,chairman of the Great Schools in Wake Coalition and a former commissioner, sees in what commissioners are saying as something “very similar to the behavior we’ve seen from the General Assembly majority,” a reference to Republicans on Jones Street and their budget-cutting. Brannon is a good and passionate advocate, and perhaps she’s pushing the rhetorical envelope here, but the commissioners have been strongly supportive of public schools and that has been fortunate for the quality of education in this county.

It’s fair to have a reasonable dialogue, and school leaders don’t necessarily have to roll over and accept the commissioners’ budget request without objection. But they should keep in mind that this board has been as strongly supportive of the public schools as any, and has boosted school funding a tremendous amount over the last several years. They’re not a local version of the GOP majority in the legislature.

This story was originally published June 15, 2017 at 6:00 PM with the headline "Wake commissioners have been generous on school funding."