Surplus is more imagined than real

In local government, as well as in people’s homes, we know that a budget is more about priorities than about money. With only a limited pool of resources, we make decisions every day about what is most important to us and support those decisions with our money.

That is why I am so disappointed with the current discussion about a budget “surplus” in the state of Maine. Our priorities are clear, yet in the case of education, they are not being provided the funding they deserve.

Check with every community and every State legislator. Education is their top priority. When was the last time you heard someone being elected to office with the tagline, “Education? Who needs it! We’re tired of paying for it!”

In Brewer, we have demonstrated our commitment in this area by adjusting our resources to support education. In fact, education accounts for approximately 55 percent of our annual spending, more than 40 percent higher than any other category of the city’s budget. We have recognized that education is our top priority, and have funded it to the best of our ability. Unfortunately, it appears the state is not doing the same. Our representatives in Augusta are not putting appropriate resources where Mainers feel they are most needed.

In the 1985 Finance Act for Schools, a State statute, the legislature set a goal of 45 percent local and 55 percent state funding for education. When the Maine economy faced dire economic challenges in 1990, towns and cities were asked to share the pain. Throughout Maine, local governments stepped forward to fill the gap and more fully fund our local schools.

Over the last decade, however, economic times have improved. The state’s own formula for providing necessary education funding, though, has never been fully funded. This has caused terrific inequities in the system, and forced local tax rates to skyrocket to the point that they have been stretched to the breaking point. At the municipal level, we are waiting for the state to apply its own statute and give us back our money.

The answer to funding public education cannot rest primarily at the local level. Free public education is a national, state, and local priority, yet our current funding system is proportionately in the reverse order. The way we budget needs to reflect our priorities.

So why does the King administration and state Legislature continue to speak of a $350 million “surplus”? A surplus, as defined in Webster’s Dictionary, describes an amount over and above what is needed. Yet, the state of Maine has not met its obligation under State statute to fully fund local education. There is no surplus.

Let me use an analogy to demonstrate my point. If a homeowner faces tough economic times and decides to reduce household mortgage payments by $300 a month, he or she can certainly have more money in hand for other purposes. But it’s not a surplus. That $300 set aside each month is still a debt owed. In the real world, a bank would foreclose on the property within months.

Our communities, by contrast, have accepted education funding levels below that which was promised and codified in state statute for nearly a decade. It is time that we call our debt due.

As the governor’s office and the legislature spar over their “newfound surplus,” they should first take a reality check. Education is Maine’s top priority, and it has long been under-funded. It’s time for our state representatives to keep their promises and put our tax dollars toward what we value most.

Janet Cobb is a Brewer city councilor and former mayor and an educator for 29 years.