Illinois Valley News

A bill signed by President Obama on Wednesday, Aug. 11 will provide much-needed funds to schools throughout the country.

However, that might not be enough to offset cuts made at the state level, as officials continue to struggle with decreasing revenue.

According to an Aug. 10 press release from the U.S. Dept. of Education (DOE), the House of Representatives voted 247-161 to pass a bill allocating $10 billion to support an estimated 160,000 education jobs nationwide. The Senate then approveed the bill 61-39.

Of that total, DOE said that $118 million will go toward supporting 2,000 education jobs in Oregon.

Dan Huber-Kantola, Three Rivers School District (TRSD) superintendent, said that federal aid should amount to around $800,000 above the level of support provided by the state. That could fund the equivalent of 10 teaching positions or five school days, he said.

But the state“s next revenue forecast is set for Thursday, Aug. 26. Those forecasts consistently have been in decline since the Legislature adjourned in June 2009.

“My fear is that we“re going to get the federal funds, then turn around and get reduced state funds, and end up no better off than we were before the federal funds came in,“ Huber-Kantola said.

TRSD Board of Education Director Dave Strahan had similar thoughts. He said that the federal aid is the equivalent of a “Band-Aid.“

“We still have drastic budgeting issues that we have to deal with now, as well as into the future,“ Strahan said.

In an Aug. 10 press release, Gov. Kulongoski cautioned that the state revenue forecast might prompt further reductions in state programs.

“Given the performance of the national economy during the past few months, we should anticipate further revenue losses until a recovery clearly takes hold,“ Kulongoski said. “With this additional assistance, we must be smart and prudent.

“We must strike a balance between addressing the short-term needs of our citizens and planning for the longer-term.“

For the past several years, TRSD has struggled with declining enrollment. That has helped batter the district“s bottom line, as state funding support is based on enrollment figures.

A study conducted by Portland State University for TRSD predicted that the decline should level out around 2012. In the meantime, Strahan, Huber-Kantola and other officials are hoping to provide the best possible education with whatever funding becomes available.

“Any relief is welcome relief at this point in time,“ Strahan said. “This gives us a little bit of breathing room and another year to assess the situation and hopefully, get a better feel for what the state is going to do budget-wise in the future.“

DOE said that the $10 billion in federal aid will be distributed to states by a formula based on population figures, and will streamline the application process so that states can submit their funding requests within days.

Funding will be awarded to states within two weeks of their submission of an approvable application, according to DOE.

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