By Peggy Venable

Education bureaucrats are hounding legislative offices opposing the 65 percent solution -- imagine that! Spending 65 percent of our education dollars on instruction is under fire. No wonder, when we find that 15 school districts in the state have more non-teaching staff than students. That's right, some school districts actually have more staff who are not in the classroom than they have students. It's time we get more education for our dollars and put more of our dollars into the classroom. Read what AFP-Texas director Peggy Venable gave education reform conference committee members.

To: HB 2 Conferees

From: Peggy Venable, director, Americans for Prosperity-Texas

RE: Putting more dollars into the classroom is good public policy helps students, teachers, taxpayers and parents

The initiative to put 65 percent or our education dollars into instruction is one of the most important legislative reforms being proposed in Texas. This solution which would encourage more of the existing education dollars be spent on instruction. The only aspect of this issue under scrutiny is how to define instructional expenses.

Defining "instructional expense" can be clarified. We propose using the National Center for Education Statistics' (NCES) broader definition which includes all credit courses, including non-core courses (this includes music and all fine arts, sports, languages, etc.). This is a great compromise. The Senate language was narrower than this, so expanding that language is a way to include all teachers and courses in the definition of "instruction."

The NCES definition is broader and according to that definition, Texas spends 60.4 percent on instruction. (Let's not celebrate that fact, as we are still in the lower half of the country in the percentage of education dollars spent on instruction!) This initiative would NOT require Texas schools to go from 50 percent instructional expenditures to 65 percent of the districts' operating budget. The 50 percent figure comes from the narrower Texas Education Agency definition of "instructional expenses."

Why this initiative is important: Instructional expenditures are going down. As we spend more on education, a decreasing percentage is being spent on instruction.

Some school districts currently have more non-teaching staff than they have students! We need to focus on students, and putting more resources in the classroom to help students and teachers.

The initiative has tremendous support with the public. Texas specific polling data that shows overwhelming support for the 65 percent initiative:

• 77.5% support the 65% requirement on school districts
• 91% support the 65% requirement after learning it would put an additional $1.6 billion into Texas classrooms without a tax increase.
• 89% of supporters said they were more likely to support a candidate that supported the 65% requirement

The survey was conducted last month by CCA, the firm that accurately predicted the outcome in all 50 states in last year's presidential elections.

A survey by the Texas-based Tower Institute in January found wide support for putting more existing dollars into the classroom. That survey found 63 percent would consider increasing the percentage of money spent in the classroom, without any additional dollars added to the system, to be an increase in public education spending.

Louisiana's Legislature recently unanimously passed a resolution encouraging its State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to implement the 65 cent requirement. Minnesota and Kansas are considering the measure as part of their education legislative special session and Arizona, Colorado, Ohio and Washington State have initiative efforts to place the measure on the ballot in November 2006. Let's not leave Texas students and teachers behind!

Gov. Perry supports the measure: "I am a strong supporter of the effort to reduce administration costs and direct more education money to the classroom, because that is where it can make the greatest difference...textbooks and teacher pay."

House Public Education Chairman Kent Grusendorf stated: "The '65 Cent Solution' insures every Texas taxpayer will receive a better return on their investment in the future and will shift $1.6 billion additional dollars back into the classroom without raising taxes."

Let's do what is right for our students, teachers and taxpayers. We encourage you to enact the 65 percent initiative using the National Center for Education Statistics definition. If you have any questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to call me at 512-476-5905.