skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Major Restructuring of School Funding Proposed

play audio
Play

Thursday, April 25, 2013   

California lawmakers are trying to overhaul the state's school-financing system and divert more money to districts that serve low-income and English-learning students.

Senate Democrats today will unveil a plan billed as an alternative to Gov. Jerry Brown's proposed Local Control Funding Formula, but both have the same goal.

The state's current system is out of date, said Ted Lempert, president of Children Now.

"This is really a historic opportunity to make more transparent and straightforward the way we fund our schools," he said, "but also to really make sure kids in intense poverty and kids in need get the extra support they need to succeed."

Brown's plan would give K-12 school districts greater control over how they spend their money, while also directing more funds to urban and rural districts that serve poorer students. Critics want funding to be shared equally by all school districts. Brown says his plan is not an ordinary legislative matter, calling it a cause for the children of California.

Children Now is coordinating the "Children's Movement of California," which supports Brown's Local Control Funding Formula and other issues. Nearly 600 organizations and thousands of individuals already have joined the movement by proclaiming that they are "Pro-Kid."

Most people want children to be a priority, Lempert said.

"What the Children's Movement is about is getting a range of organizations - from large statewide groups to individual local nonprofits and businesses and community parent groups - to sign onto saying 'We are pro-kid'," he said, "but then it creates a very large network of groups that can weigh in to support key issues."

The 2012 Kids Count Report ranked California 41st in children's well-being.

More information is online at childrennow.org.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021