Time to reconsider school mandates

A recent outcry from educators has made "mandates" almost a dirty word.

The truth is, some of the state and federal school requirements are worthwhile, and some are obtuse and unneeded. Many come without any funding, and that's unlikely to change.

Complaints from school districts have gotten louder as the economy has tanked. Administrators want more control over their budgets and are frustrated that local school systems are being forced to pay for programs that, in the case of Elgin Area School District U-46, make up $12 million of a $350 million education budget, as staff writer Kerry Lester reported Sunday.

While we're not willing to go so far as to support an Illinois bill that would let school districts ignore mandates that aren't funded, we wholeheartedly agree that mandates need to be examined through a new lens - one that acknowledges the difficult economic situation our schools face.

These days, any mandate that must be financed by local schools translates directly into fewer teachers, larger classes and curtailed extracurricular activities. That's the trade-off that must be justified with every new mandate.

A number of measures in Springfield aim to lighten the load on schools. We oppose those that could give rise to inconsistent standards for school districts across the state. Allowing individual school districts to decide whether to comply with a particular unfunded mandate, the gist of House Bill 4711 sponsored by downstate Republican Rep. Roger Eddy, runs the risk of widening the educational gap between "have" and "have-not" school districts. (Eddy, a school superintendent, does list some exceptions to the opt-out: special education, transportation, lunch programs and courses required for graduation.)

Another Eddy proposal, House Joint Resolution 74, would establish a committee under the Illinois State Board of Education to review current state mandates for schools and recommend to the legislature which ones to cut. We support this measure, as long as parent groups have a seat at the table along with others specified in the bill - school administrators, teachers, other educators and business representatives. Along with this, we suggest an expiration date for every new mandate, forcing it to be reconsidered against new economic circumstances.

Yet another proposal is sound, but would require a referendum to change the state Constitution - not the most expedient solution. Introduced two weeks ago by Sen. Pamela Althoff, a McHenry Republican, that measure would require that new unfunded mandates be approved by a three-fifths majority in the state legislature, rather than a simple majority.

Our schools need a hand now. We urge lawmakers to address the problem of unfunded mandates swiftly and with a goal of keeping standards consistent across the state.