Editorial —
BS Busted: Lawmakers used budget stabilization or “BS” to withhold millions of dollars from schools to pay for Colorado’s state budget. School supporters have forced the state to begin fully funding K-12 schools with the 2024-25 school year starting Aug. 15.
It’s been a tough, and traumatic 10 years for Denver Public Schools (DPS). Resource officers in-and-out of schools, shootings, suicide threats, plus struggling to keep teachers. And who can forget the dysfunctional School Board during the years Tay Anderson was Vice President, with allegations of misconduct, and censured by fellow board members.
During the same time span Colorado’s politicians — claiming to be big-hearted, benevolent, and sympathetic — told parents they “truly cared about education.” They avowed, and maintained they were “on the front line helping to secure funds for schools.” That’s in spite of the fact the state’s school funding has ranked in the bottom third nationwide for decades.
Call it political tears, politics, and money, or more accurately, worthless “BS!” It’s recently come to light that since 2009-10 the state’s lawmakers — both Democrats and Republicans — created the budget stabilization or “BS factor” — allowing lawmakers to withhold millions of dollars from public schools each year to balance the state budget. The honest, indisputable truth is that from 2009-10 through the just wrapped-up 2023-24 school year, our state government swindled a staggering $38.1 billion in school funds to pay for Colorado’s state budget!
That includes funds for the 76,157 Denver Public Schools (DPS) students that were enrolled in the 2023-24 school year.
Despite years of criticism from parents and educators, plus legal challenges in the courts — the Colorado Supreme Court voted 4 to 3 to uphold the state’s use of the BS factor in Sept. 2015 — nothing had changed through the just closed 2023-24 school year. An entire generation of Denver students never had the opportunity to learn in a fully-funded classroom. Lack of sufficient funding resulted in underpaid teachers, overcrowded classrooms, and limited access to extracurricular activities, and mental health services.
Stolen student funds — all that dough meant to educate our kids — was instead used to pay the staggering 99,222 state workers employed by the state’s executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The cumulative growth rate of Colorado state government has increased by 20.3% in the last 10 years.
Yes, families and their kids were robbed by politicians to pay the people who work for politicians. Selfish, self-seeking, simply unacceptable. Beyond “hoggish,’ it’s wretched, rotten, and second-rate, even for politicians. Is it any wonder that Coloradans are growing increasingly pessimistic about our state government?
Through dedication, determination, spunk, and steadfastness, school supporters have finally forced lawmakers to stop the swindle. The state will begin “fully funding” K-12 schools with the 2024-25 school year that starts Aug. 15.
Abolishing the BS Factor will increase school district budgets to more than $400 per student. Even with the funding uplift, today’s education dollars won’t go nearly as far as they did 14 years ago when the thievery started. Colorado’s school funding ranks in the bottom third nationwide, and per-pupil spending was already below the national average before politicians created the BS Factor to pickpocket kids.
When the 2024-25 school year starts this month, the additional money could result in smaller class sizes, and revive programs such as art classes. In addition to providing students with higher-quality education, added funds may also improve pay for teachers and staff.
Eliminating the BS Factor is a crucial step to ensuring that DPS schools have the resources to provide students with the education they need. But don’t get unduly psyched up. When adjusted for inflation, spending for schools will be about the same as it was in 1989. Denver Public Schools will net about $14 million. DPS Chief of Finance Chuck Carpenter acknowledges the increase is encouraging and will give the district a shot in the arm. Nevertheless, he calculates it will equal about $174 per student or 1% of the district’s $1.4 billion budget.
Reckless, rash, imprudent, and irresponsible, state politician’s use of the BS factor to rip-off school funds exposes the vulnerability of public schools to fraud. Straight from the shoulder, the ethically and morally wrong scheme, scam, and swindle was and is deceit and deception at its nastiest. Albeit, regrettably successful. Parents and educators must create/construct a system of oversight to spot, address, and stop future attempts by state lawmakers to siphon-off school funds for political purposes. What’s at stake in future oversight: Theft of funds from our public schools not only harms students, but also undermines public confidence in our public education system.
— Editorial Board