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for school
consolidation
There have been close calls with school system consolidation over the years, but this year, it could happen.
Sen. Tony Rand has introduced a bill that would fund only one school administration system per county. There are 11 counties that have functional separate systems.
The consolidation of both local systems is something that neither would rather do. School districts are essentially reimbursed on a per-student basis, so the county system would have to absorb a 30 percent increase in student numbers by an already stretched administration.
Residents of the city system like the extra level of local control and say-so they have with a school board that is responsible for the systems’ five schools.
Saving money at the local level is not an argument since almost all the administrative costs are absorbed by the state. Estimates are that the state would save only about $11 million annually by consolidating systems.
Should the bill become law, residents of the city system could vote on a special tax district to keep its separate system intact, but it’s sketchy if such a referendum would pass. It’s estimated that a 4-cent tax would be a minimum amount.
Without significant savings for local taxpayers, and what amounts to a drop in the bucket for taxpayers statewide, it would seem that there aren’t many compelling reasons to consolidate so few local school districts into larger countywide districts.
But with momentum in the General Assembly for consolidation, it will be interesting to see the level of determination across the state for keeping separate systems intact.