For
Immediate Release
December 12, 2002
Contact: Rusty Cheuvront or Channell Barbour (502) 564-2611
For
more budget info. and charts log on to: http://gov.state.ky.us/budget2002/index.htm
FRANKFORT,
KY – Surrounded by school children and educators, Governor Patton today
outlined key programs that would be affected by any new budget cuts based on
contingency plans submitted by the Kentucky Department of Education, the Council
on Postsecondary Education and Adult Education.
“The
potential cuts to education would affect every aspect of the educational process
in the state and result in major implications for the future economic prosperity
of Kentuckians,” said Patton.
“The importance of a
strong educational system cannot be overstated especially in
today’s knowledge-based economy. A
high school dropout can expect to earn only about 39%
of what an individual with a college degree can expect to earn, and a
high school graduate only 56%.”
In
the current biennium, Kentucky faces a potential $144 million budget cut, or
2.6% for the remainder of the current fiscal year and a 5.2% cut, or $365
million for FY ’03 based the revenue shortfalls projected by the Consensus
Forecasting Group in November. In the last biennium, Kentucky sustained and
absorbed $872 million in budget cuts without affecting the delivery of services
to the people of the Commonwealth.
Education
and its direct link to per capita income and standard of living has been a key
focus of the Patton administration. Because
of the commitment to education, Kentucky
students, based on several national evaluations, are performing above the
national average in math, science and language arts. That trend can be quickly
reversed. The magnitude of
the problem in FY ’03 and FY ’04 suggests that all agencies would have to
bear the pain of budgetary cutbacks since exempting large portions of the budget
would have a devastating impact on the rest of state government.
According
to Kentucky Education Commissioner Gene Wilhoit, elementary and secondary
education could see the elimination of as many as 1800 teaching positions, a
reduction of $4 million in funding for Family Resource Youth Service Centers, or
the loss of as much as $151 million in Federal Title I funding statewide across
the entire K-12 education system. "Kentucky's
school districts are already struggling and suffering real financial
hardship," said Wilhoit. "This is not a short-term budget crisis that
belt-tightening can solve. We've made tremendous progress in K-12 education over
the past decade, and we have to decide how we are going to continue to invest
successfully in our children's futures and in the future of our state."
Postsecondary
losses, according to the CPE contingency plan, could contribute to a significant
rise in tuition rates, reduced financial aid and loss of access to medical care
because of cutbacks in university residency programs.
Speaking
on behalf of the Council on Postsecondary Education, Acting President Sue Hodges
Moore stated, "These
cuts will be felt on all our campuses and in every corner of Kentucky.
Too many of our students will be taught in larger classes by part-time
faculty in buildings where maintenance is overdue.
Tuition will increase substantially.
Those increases, plus cuts in financial aid, will make it harder for our
current students to stay in college and impossible for many Kentuckians to go at
all. And cuts will hurt our ability
to keep bringing to Kentucky nationally known researchers who will help us fight
disease and improve the quality of our lives."
Over
the past two years great strides have been made in adult education and literacy.
Enrollment in adult education
programs was 86,413 in fiscal year 2002, surpassing the goal of 75,000 students.
Adult education enrollment in fiscal year 2001 was 62,734 students.
The
imposition of budget cuts to these programs will effectively undo the progress
that has been made during the past two years.
During the last calendar year 20,689 Kentuckians earned a GED.
With a budget cut of only $50,000 to the GED fee waiver program, 1,667
people may not be able to take the test. “One
in four Kentuckians over the age of 25, or 685,000 people, do not have a high
school diploma. We
are told that on average, individuals without a high school diploma earn $5,000
less each year than those with a diploma or GED. That equates to $3.4 billion in
lost wages each year, or $103 billion over 30 years of employment,” said Dr.
Cheryl King, Commissioner for Adult Education and Literacy.
Governor
Patton reiterated that he was not advocating cuts.
“We’ve gotten to this point together – parents, teachers, community
and business leaders, and our courageous legislature – and together we must
work out the solutions,” said the Governor. “We must reconfirm our
commitment to education so that all Kentucky’s children are given as good a
chance as any in the world to succeed in the knowledge-driven economy.”
-end-