Governors, Legislators Face Music

Gov. Jerry Brown addresses the audience after he was sworn in last week as California's 39th governor. He also held the office from 1975 to 1983.

—Anne Chadwick Williams/AP

K-12 Priorities Meet Fiscal Reality

By Sean Cavanagh

Despite bleak fiscal conditions that could thwart some of their priorities, governors and state lawmakers—bolstered in some cases by new Republican majorities—are expected to press forward this year with ambitious education proposals that could include changing teacher job protections and expanding school choice.

Newly elected and returning officeholders go to work this month as states struggle to climb out of the most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression, with many warning that K-12 education—historically shielded from the budget ax—is likely to face severe cuts.

While state tax revenues have improved somewhat recently, 15 states already have reported new budget shortfalls since the 2011 fiscal year began last summer, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures . And states are likely face continuing budget gaps over the next two years as well, according to the Denver-based...