It is all about the budget

State Sen. Ralph Ostmeyer (right) gestures while answering a question from constituents during a recent town hall meeting. Also addressing citizens concerns was Rep. Don Hineman (left).

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By Rod Haxton, editor

Anyone who has followed the Kansas Legislature during the past several months knows there is one issue that dwarfs all others - the state budget.

There simply isn’t enough money to go around.

As difficult as it is this year for the legislature to come to grips with a means of balancing the budget, it’s going to get even worse in 2011.

“If we thought this past year was tough, wait until next year’s budget,” warned Rep. Don Hineman (R-Dighton) during town hall meetings in Scott City and Dighton. “We’re looking at projected budget cuts of $400 million (in 2011).”

Of course, no one is left unscathed by efforts to balance the budget - from Medicare recipients to students in public schools.

Hineman feels too much of the burden from budget cuts is being pushed onto the elderly and schools.

“Some people feel we can fill the $400 million hole with more cuts to education,” he points out. “They see the contingency reserve in school budgets and want them to use it all up.”

And the second-year legislature is concerned about the impact on Medicare recipients, and nursing homes, if the 10 percent cuts in Medicare spending that were recently enacted by Gov. Mark Parkinson as a temporary means of balancing the budget remain in effect.

As a best case scenario, the legislature is looking for agencies to “flat line” their budgets, which means they get no more revenue than they received in 2009 - and probably less.

“In effect, this is a budget cut when you look at rising expenses, but in these tough times we feel that’s an appropriate course of action,” Hineman says.

School Budgets

Of greatest concern with most local constituents are the continued reduction in state aid to school districts.

According to Supt. Don Wells of the Scott County district, expenses have climbed about $400,000 this past year while revenue - primarily in the form of state aid - has declined by nearly $500,000.

According to the Kansas Legislative Research Department, state aid for the Scott County district was $5,391,689 in 2008-09 and slipped to $4,910,779 - a loss of $480,910 - despite an increase in enrollment.

“And it’s even worse for my rural districts with declining enrollment,” says Sen. Ralph Ostmeyer (R-Grinnell).

He said state aid for districts such as Healy and Dighton kept pace with inflation from 1998-2009, but declining enrollment has caught up with these and many other districts. It’s been further compounded by cuts in state funding this past year.

“If there’s another $286 (per pupil) cut by the state, my superintendents tell me the only place left to cut are programs and staff,” Ostmeyer points out.

While there is some talk about school consolidation, and various plans are being floated around the statehouse, Ostmeyer doesn’t see them getting much traction, especially among Western Kansas legislators.

“I don’t feel the overall savings are that significant,” he says. “But it’s a constant battle trying to protect our small, rural schools.”

Bottom line, emphasizes Ostmeyer, “The state of Kansas is broke.”

And he says the state’s budget problems will get even worse in 2012 when money from the federal stimulus plan is scheduled to run out.

Staff Retention

Even the threat of budget cuts is creating a dilemma for rural districts which already find it difficult to attract teachers.

“It’s tough to retain quality staff when they hear this kind of budget news and that the state might cut our funding even more,” says Dighton Supt. Angela Lawrence. “If they think we might have to cut positions they’re looking elsewhere for jobs.”

She says it’s also tough to prepare a budget when a district doesn’t know how much money to expect from the state, and whether state funds will be cut in the middle of a school year.

“I don’t think the general public understands how serious this is,” Lawrence says.

Expand Tax Base

Roger Timken, Dighton, suggested the legislature needs to find ways to “enhance revenue” - in other words, expand the tax base or increase taxes.

“What have all the tax exemptions done for us in Western Kansas?” Timken asked. “How much industry has it attracted? How many jobs have been created?”

Hineman acknowledged that most