$22 million coming to U-46

Suburban lawmakers won their fight over a funding fix for the state's second largest school district Thursday, overriding Gov. Pat Quinn's late July veto of the legislation.

Elgin Area School District U-46 is expected to receive an additional $22 million in general state aid in the coming year.

And because of an overestimation, other districts aren't expected to suffer much, at least this year, the state board of education says. Collectively, the state's 868 other school districts will receive $260,000 less than they expected this year, due to the funding fix, state board spokesman Matt Vanover said.

Thursday's 80-29 House vote came less than 24 hours after the Senate passed the measure by a 38-16 margin.

Because lawmakers were voting during a veto session, a 3/5 vote was needed in both houses.

The legislation seeks to correct a problem with the way state aid is calculated for U-46, which lies in Cook, Kane and DuPage counties. Because Cook County tax rate estimates are used in calculating a large portion of the district's state aid each year, U-46 officials say they are being shortchanged by millions.

The legislation, filed last year by state Sen. Michael Noland, an Elgin Democrat, would allow the state board to readjust the district's state aid payments based on actual rates, once they become available.

It passed both houses last spring, but was vetoed by Quinn July 28.

The governor rationalized that he could “not boost state aid to one district at the expense of others,” a point Noland said he now considers moot.

Elgin Democrat Keith Farnham, House sponsor of the legislation, told his peers of the 3,500 signatures he'd collected in his district, following the governor's veto. Along with Democrats, several Republicans expressed support for the legislation, including Carol Stream Rep. Randy Ramey and Palatine Rep. Suzie Bassi.

“The point is that they would have received the money (naturally) if the formula used correct numbers,” said Rep. Roger Eddy, a Hutsonville Republican and member of the House Elementary and Secondary Education committee.

He noted that the decision was “difficult because it's a tough budgetary year.”

U-46, millions in the red, has instituted a number of severe cuts over the past year. Class sizes have increased, teaching positions and extracurricular programs have been cut, and an early childhood center was closed.

District spokesman Tony Sanders said “equitable funding” of school districts “is more important today than when the bill was originally filed. ... We will be improving our fiscal outlook for the immediate future.”

Farnham was unable to pin down a precise date when U-46 can expect to start receiving the money.

In a statement, Quinn's office noted “the governor stands by the original intent behind his veto.”