Governor transfers funds to education budget

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) -- Gov. Don Siegelman has transferred $20 million from two special accounts into the state's education budget and will shift more this month to prevent spending cuts before the end of the current fiscal year on Sept. 30.

Finance Director Henry Mabry said the education budget is running about $90 million short but the governor will be able to transfer funds from various accounts to make up the shortfall. He said the governor will not have to tap into a $250 million dollar "rainy day account" that voters approved to prevent education budget cuts.

"We'll get through the year, and we won't touch the rainy day account," Mabry said Monday.

The Legislature passed a law earlier this year that allows the governor to transfer up to $82.1 million from various state accounts to prevent education budget cuts, known as proration.

Mabry said the administration last week transferred $18 million from a fund for state computer services and $2 million from a fund for state phone services. The other money available includes $26.1 million from the Capital Improvement Trust Fund and $36 million from the sale or lease of so-called 16th section lands given to Alabama counties in the 1800s for school use.

Covington County schools have gone to court to block the transfer of 16th section lands, saying that money was meant to remain untouched and held in trust for public schools.

As of the end of August, tax receipts that go into the education budget were up by about $5 million over this time last year. However, lawmakers had planned for growth of about $95 million when they passed the budget, leaving it with the $90 million shortfall. [...]

Wow. Safe for one more fiscal year. Maybe.

Hard to believe there's not a better way to fund schools, isn't it? But heavens-to-Betsy, let's not try to figure it out. Let's keep looking under the couch cushions and in the change tray in the car, because we always find a little something there, don't we? And instead of trying to figure out why we're having to pay so much, let's figure out a way to pay more, because you know that means Quality Education™. It's for The Children™, after all, and you want them to have a Quality Education™, don't you? Good thing we've got some of the highly educated products of the Alabama school system working for us and The Children™ down in Montgomery, or we all might just be lost--LOST I SAY!--as we stumble around all befuddled like.

Thank you, Alabama's Elected Officials™ for guiding us through this barren land! To show our gratitude, please feel free to plunder whatever money we send to you to make sure your lot in life is a comfortable one, and to insure that your friends are able to compete amongst themselves for table scraps. Maybe a nice fat computer contract or two would help those nice folks out.
posted by Terry at 11:43:00 AM