An Alaska lawmaker is proposing a change in state law that would eliminate the requirement for local dollars for public schools.
North Pole Republican Rep. Tammie Wilson says the state should pick up the whole bill for K-12 education. The state already pays the full cost for school districts outside municipalities. Wilson says current law penalizes voters for forming cities or boroughs.
The News Miner reports (http://is.gd/qXw99l ) the Ketchikan Gateway Borough is preparing a lawsuit against the state on the same issue. The borough argues the state law violates the Alaska Constitution's requirement for the state to provide the entirety of basic need funding to schools.
Wilson's proposal is already being opposed by the Alaska Democratic Party, which calls it another Republican-led attack on education funding.
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Information from: Fairbanks (Alaska) Daily News-Miner, http://www.newsminer.com