Governor Sam Brownback and Legislative Leadership Outline Opportunity for Progress Following Kansas Supreme Court Ruling on Education Funding

Statement

Today Governor Sam Brownback, joined by Attorney General Derek Schmidt, Senate President Susan Wagle and House Speaker Ray Merrick and other legislators responded to the Kansas Supreme Court ruling on the Gannon vs Kansas case.

"We have an opportunity for progress," Governor Brownback said. "My commitment is to work with legislative leadership to address the allocation issue identified by the court. We will fix this."

The court has set out steps for the legislature to end the lawsuit by July 1, 2014. It affirms the Constitutional requirement for education to be "adequate" and "equitable."

"Our task is to come to resolution on capital outlay funding and local option budgets before July 1," said Senate President Wagle. "We now have some clarity as we work toward resolution of issues that began years ago under prior administrations."

"I was pleased the court also recognized that total dollars spent is not the touchstone for adequacy in education," said Speaker Merrick. "Our focus is on supporting teachers and improving student outcomes so that all Kansas children continue to receive a quality education."

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