Opponents see third grade requirement as unfunded mandate

Bruce baker

City Editor

McCOOK, Neb. — Nebraska public schools are generally funded better and perform above average when compared to their national counterparts, however, committing each student will be able to read by the fourth grade might be asking too much, at least according to opponents of a bill introduced at the state level.

The bill, LB 651, intends to implement a third grade reading requirement and was debated Thursday but ultimately no vote was taken. District 44 State Sen. Dan Hughes said just prior to the debate he would likely oppose it, indicating during his weekly conference call he would listen to the debate before making a final decision.

The bill would require each student’s progression from one grade to the next be determined, at least in part, by their proficiency in reading, according to its introduced copy. School districts would be required to offer an accelerated reading intervention program for Kindergarten through third-grade students who have been identified as having a reading deficiency and students not reading at the appropriate level by third grade would be held back, unless they qualified for an exemption.

Sen. Hughes indicated the bill stemmed from a real problem within Nebraska’s education system but the paperwork the legislation would create seemed to outweigh the benefit.

“I do believe there are problems in the inner-city schools, and I think that’s probably what [Sen.] Linehan’s goal is, but creating an additional requirement on all schools, the paperwork is over burdensome,” said Sen. Hughes, adding many felt it was an unfunded mandate.

“I will listen to the debate but am leaning against it,” he said Thursday morning.

In a follow-up with the Gazette this morning, Sen. Hughes said he didn’t think the bill’s introducer, Sen. Lou Ann Linehan, could get the 33 votes lined up to bring LB 651 back up for discussion.

“I know she is working hard at trying to round up the votes. She has asked me and I have told her I will not be giving her a cloture vote. I am assuming the bill is dead for the year,” said Sen. Hughes.

While some Nebraska students could be entering the fourth grade with reading deficiencies, spending on education doesn’t appear to be the problem, at least when compared to the national average. Nebraska spends more annually on a per pupil basis than the national average. During the 2013 fiscal year, Nebraska spent $11,579 per pupil in the public elementary and secondary education system, compared to a national average of $10,700, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Nearly half of the funding for schools stems from collected property taxes. A 2015 presentation to the Revenue Committee and Education Committee of the Nebraska Legislature, compiled by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, indicated 47.9% of Nebraska Education revenue stemmed from local property taxes, 32.1 percent from state aid, 9.7 percent from federal assistance and 10.3 percent from other local revenue, during the 2012-13 fiscal year.

The presentation also indicated Nebraska public school’s are generally considered to be of high quality and students scored above the national averages in the National Assessment of Education Progress.

Nebraska scored a 285 in 8th grade reading, compared to a U.S. average of 284, and a 269 in 8th grade math, compared to a national average of 266, at the time.