A House committee endorsed a proposal Thursday to amend the Illinois Constitution to require the state to pay more than half of the cost of elementary and secondary education in the state.
By a 13-1 vote, the House Elementary and Secondary Education committee approved the so-called ”51 percent” amendment, supported by many education groups in the ongoing deliberations about education reform.
”We cannot possibly expect any kind of meaningful reform without adequate funding,” said Reg Weaver, president of the Illinois Education Association, a teachers union. ”And this constitutional amendment would provide that source of revenue.”
The state constitution assigns the state ”primary responsibility” for funding public education, but does not set a specific percentage. The state`s share of education funding has dropped from a peak of 48 percent in the 1975-76 school year to 39.1 percent this year, according to statistics from the State Board of Education.
It is estimated that the amendment, if approved by the General Assembly and voters, would require the state to spend an additional $700 million to $900 million on public schools a year. That price tag is expected to draw opposition from legislators in the House and Senate.
The proposed amendment would have to be approved by a three-fifths vote of the lawmakers in each chamber to be made a referendum question on the 1986 ballot.
It would then need to be approved by 50 percent of those voting in the election or 60 percent of those voting on the amendment.
