The state budget impasse has largely spared public schools, thanks to Governor Bruce Rauner’s decision to fund them for the entire year. But some school districts are still hurting.
Illinois school funding relies heavily on property taxes.
That means districts with thriving industries and expensive homes spend as much as $30,000 per student every year, while districts with few businesses and modest homes get by on as little as $7,000 per student.
State Representative Sue Scherer, a Democrat from Decatur, is one of the lawmakers pushing a plan that would change the state aid formula.
Scherer is a former teacher, and says her school lacked textbooks, basic office supplies, and even hot water — conditions teachers don’t face in Chicago’s prosperous northern suburbs.
“Do you think they don’t have a stapler? Do you think they don’t have paper? Do you think they don’t have textbooks? Are you kidding? They argue about how many lanes they’ll put in their new swimming pool,” Scherer said.
Opponents of the new formula say it would create winners and losers, by taking away some state funds from wealthier districts.
