Ya gotta start somewhere. And Gov. John Hickenlooper’s start certainly caused a splash.
Faced with continued declines in revenues, and a looming massive shortfall in the state budget, Hickenlooper proposed slashing $332 million from K-12 education, $36 million from higher education, and a grand total of $570 million to the state’s overall spending.
No one wants to cut funding from our schools. We’re not sure how our schools are going to absorb further cuts, probably to the tune of $500 per pupil. But the fact remains that 63 percent of the state’s expenditures are shared between K-12 education, higher education and Medicaid.
Ya gotta start somewhere.
While we hope the Legislature can find ways to lessen the cuts to education, the reality may be that Hickenlooper’s suggestions are the only real way to keep the state afloat. As Hickenlooper stated to the annual Colorado Press Association convention last week, “Math has become the new four-letter word.”
Our impression is that Hickenlooper is open to discussion. But he’s also being practical. The only way to prevent the cuts is to find a way to rapidly increase revenue. If the economy was to take off like a rocket, then maybe the cuts could be avoided. But there isn’t anyone who believes that will happen. The only other way would be increase tax rates, and we believe to do that now will hamper the prospect of the economy improving at all.
There are no easy answers, but the discussion has to start somewhere.
We hate what Hickenlooper is proposing, but we appreciate his honesty. And we think he’s exactly right.