Report Finds Tax Policy Takes Toll On State Aid for Michigan Schools

By Joetta L. Sack

Citing a new report, educators in Michigan say that adjustments to dozens of state tax laws since 1994 have added up to nearly $2 billion in lost revenue for schools—nearly $550 million in fiscal 2002 alone.

Critics of the analysis, however, say that it fails to paint a balanced picture of the state's efforts to finance its public schools and to create a more stable funding system.

Commissioned by three education groups, the report shows that even before the country's economy fell into recession last year, Michigan schools were losing significant revenue from what had seemed like minor changes to state taxes on income, sales,...