The Court Intervenes: School-finance ruling puts pressure on Austin

Dallas Morning News | Editorials:

"The Texas Supreme Court ruled clearly yesterday that Gov. Rick Perry and state legislators must solve the state's school funding problem. That's the positive take-away from the court's long-awaited decision. They must overhaul the state's method of funding schools. And they must do so by June 1. That's the best news coming out of a split verdict that on the whole is a win for Texas."

As DMN says, the Legislature dithered through four consecutive sessions without solving this problem. There's no guarantee they'll do any better even with a court ordered deadline. But the Courts have done the Legislature a favor. The Legislature doesn't have to increase overall funding, only shift the tax sources around, relieving the current burden on property taxes. They may still have a devil of time doing even that, given the power of the special interests entrenched against increasing either taxes on business or taxes on consumption. Therefore, expect overall school funding to continue to be capped at a level that results in our children falling behind in the global competition for skilled jobs.