tuition tax credits Archives

Jones wants interim education committee

June 8, 2012 By Mike Lear

The likely next Speaker of the Missouri House wants to see a committee formed to work on education issues in the interim, after some key issues were left on the table in the 2012 session.

Minority Floor Leader Tim Jones

Majority Floor Leader Tim Jones (R-Eureka) says compared to past years when education issues fizzled, the 2012 session was “remarkable” with several passing out of the House.

“We had the charter school bill which became law which I’m very happy with, that became law … We passed the teacher tenure bill. A small step forward but a significant step. It passed the House, it almost got through the Senate. Died on the Senate floor in the last day. A second bill that passed, that school busing transportation bill which is a form of education reform. That also became law.”

Jones wants to keep that momentum going ahead of the 2013 session.

“I would like to see some kind of interim committee or even joint interim committee where the sides could get together and talk about the future. Maybe a little difficult in an election year but this issue is a priority for all Missouri children and families so I’d like to see it happen.”

Jones can’t appoint committees, but Speaker Steven Tilley can. He says if Jones wants to see any interim committees formed, “I’d be open to any suggestions he might have.”

Jones says the foundation formula for public school funding will be a key issue in 2013, but he also wants to see things like tuition tax credits and teacher tenure addressed.

With many faces in the legislature changing, Jones isn’t sure who he wants to chair such an interim committee but he knows who he would want on it: Representatives Steve Cookson (R-Fairdealing), Mike Lair (R-Chillicothe), Mike Cierpiot (R-Lee’s Summit) and Rick Stream (R-Kirkwood) are some names he mentions.

Education bill might move this week

March 27, 2012 By Mike Lear

After a month without action, some movement might happen this week on a comprehensive education bill in the House.

Representative Scott Dieckhaus

Majority Floor Leader Tim Jones (R-Eureka) and Elementary and Secondary Education Committee Chairman Scott Dieckhaus (R-Washington) both suggest the package sponsored by Dieckhaus might pass out of the House Rules Committee this week. The bill includes fixes for the Foundation Formula and the Turner Decision.

House Democrats are critical of the bill’s inclusion of tuition tax credits, otherwise referred to as “passport scholarships.” Dieckhaus says they are needed to let the legislation benefit all of the students in the St. Louis City public schools.

He says if surrounding St. Louis County school districts cap capacity at 8,300 students, that won’t be enough. “We need to serve 15,740 students … the passport scholarships could help us serve an additional 8,000 students, so we can actually serve that full number of students.”

Dieckhaus says that language is more specific to St. Louis, while a different approach is needed for students from Kansas City-area schools. A proposal that is being considered, but has not yet been added to the bill, is based on what has worked in New Orleans schools. “The top performing schools became the New Orleans Parish School District, and the rest of the schools were chartered and they’ve seen really tremendous progress by doing that and we’re wondering if we can replicate that.” Dieckhaus says such a plan might be considered when the bill reaches the floor.

His proposal also includes scaled back language dealing with teacher tenure. Seniority-based layoffs were removed, decisions about salaries are returned to local school boards, and tenure is eliminated for teachers hired for the 2013-14 school year or later.

Look at Dieckhaus’ bill, HB 1740

At halftime, no education bill on the Missouri House floor (AUDIO)

March 8, 2012 By Mike Lear

House Republicans say they have achieved most of their slate of legislative priorities for the session heading into Spring Break, but House Democrats say one top priority has been absent from floor debate. An education bill has yet to advance out of the committee process.

The House Republican Caucus, lead by House Speaker Steven Tilley, says it has reached most of its legislative goals so far.

House Speaker Steven Tilley (R-Perryville) says those bills are still being worked on but right now there is no consensus in his caucus on them. While leadership in both parties called education a “must pass” issue early on, Tilley now says, “If we can get it done we certainly well and if we can’t, we can’t, and we’ll come back next year and work on it.”

Several GOP leaders said from the outset that they want to package together education issues this year. That could put the issues both parties are concerned with, fixes for the foundation formula and the Turner decision, in a bill with things like tuition tax credits and tenure reform.

Tilley stands by that plan. “Part of the logic between the leadership team is to try and put parts of it together so it actually could cobble together coalitions to get us to 82 (votes in the House).”

Minority Leader Mike Talboy (D-Kansas City) has his own opinion of the Republicans’ motivation. “I realize that they have (St. Louis philanthropist) Rex Sinquefield to answer to, and if Daddy Rex says that something needs to be in there then Daddy Rex is going to get what he wants.”

Minority Floor Leader Mike Talboy is flanked by the House Democratic Caucus after Thursday adjournment heading into Spring Break.

Talboy has said since the beginning of the session that the education issues need to be separated out. “Education of children in this state is more important than creating jobs that we don’t necessarily have an educated workforce to fill if we don’t do something about the education system, and I think that it is offensive to sit there and say that the economic development bills should stand on their own, but that the education bills are not important enough to stand on their own and pass on their own merits.”

Tilley says if an education bill does not pass, the session can still be called a success. “I’m not gonna pin any specific thing on whether it’s a success or a failure. I think you have to look at the session in totality.”

He adds, “But, it certainly would be something I’d like to get done.”

AUDIO: Listen to the House Republicans media conference, 13:09

AUDIO: Listen to the House Democrats media conference, 8:24