The state Senate’s proposal to provide $30 million to school districts to help pay the unexpectedly high heating bills is a nice gesture.

Monday, February 12, 2001

The state Senate’s proposal to provide $30 million to school districts to help pay the unexpectedly high heating bills is a nice gesture.

However, providing money to help pay school districts’ heating bills, while ignoring other entities which primarily use state funding to operate, isn’t exactly fair. There’s no question agencies ranging from the Department of Natural Resources to court services to hospitals and nursing homes that rely on Medicare payments – all of which provide important services – also are facing budget shortfalls because of high heating bills.

If the Legislature plans to dole out emergency heating funds for schools, it ought to do it for other agencies as well, which would further take away from the tax cut most in St. Paul are clamoring for.

But most of all, providing a one-time bandage for school districts, especially in this area, takes away from the need to find solutions to long-term problems of declining enrollment and aging facilities. And there’s no question increased funding will be a part of those solutions.

Mower County’s school districts certainly can use heating aid, but not if the Legislature plans to leave it out in the cold on larger funding issues.