Rendell Administration Continues to Lie on Education Funding

Pennsylvania Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak continues the administration’s scare tactics and ininaccurate propaganda claiming that the $27.3 billion PA House budget would force schools to increase property taxes and children would stop learning.

We have already debunked this rhetoric with facts:

• School districts will receive an average 12% increase in funding 
• Property taxes have gone up regardless of state aid increases
• Dramatically higher spending has not improved academic performance, despite what the rigged “costing-out” study claims
• “State of the art” buildings are the fastest growing cost-driver in education, and as schools have more funding to spend, they spend a higher share on buildings.

What is new to the debate is this – and school boards are well aware of it, even though Zahorchak sent his latest tale of macabre to all school board members – school districts have already set property taxes for the coming year.  Unlike the state, they passed their budgets on time, and set tax rates.  Many did so based on the expectation of aid under SB 850.