TRAVERSE CITY -- School administrators and legislators in northern Michigan believe a state school aid budget that cuts per-student funding won't narrow the gap between the state's richest and poorest school districts.
A K-12 education budget reached Thursday would reduce funding levels by $165 per student, down from a proposed $218 cut.
The cuts also include 20 percent from intermediate school districts, which oversee individual districts and offer additional services such as vocational education.
But because schools across Michigan receive different per-student funding amounts -- a system set by Proposal A in 1994 -- slashing $165 from everyone will mean greater hardship for districts at the lowest levels, said Paul Soma, chief financial officer of Traverse City Area Public Schools.
TCAPS last year received the base amount of $7,316 per student.
"We're going to take a bigger percentage hit," Soma said Friday. "I don't agree with any solution that continues the discriminatory practice of funding one child at one level and funding another child at another level."
Schools will get about 3 percent less money overall this academic year than during 2008-09.
Budget legislation passed late Thursday includes several policy changes that will affect how schools operate. Among them is a requirement to include a link from Internet home pages to detailed budget information.
A spokeswoman said Friday that Gov. Jennifer Granholm will sign the bill.
Lawmakers still have not approved a revenue plan to come up with $100 million needed to allow for the smaller reduction in schools funding.
In addition, using a share of Michigan's federal stimulus dollars this year leaves open the possibility for cuts in future years, said state Rep. Dan Scripps, D-Leland, who voted against the bill.
"I'm really disappointed that this is the best we could come up with," Scripps said. "I've got some real concerns that we don't have funding in place for next year, or certainly the year after that, when stimulus runs out."
State Rep. Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City, supported the bill. In September, he said he supported a percentage cut to education that would distribute equal weight to districts, regardless of the amount of state aid they receive.
It would have been difficult under current circumstances to get a better deal, he said Friday.
"We tried to come up with some new ideas, but it was also important that we get a budget passed" so the state could release federal money, Schmidt said. "Cuts, while very difficult, were better than what was originally on the table."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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