Education

Governor’s Tax Plan Gets GOP Backing

September 21, 2004 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The following offers highlights of the recent legislative sessions. Precollegiate enrollment figures are based on fall 2003 data reported by state officials for public elementary and secondary schools. The figures for precollegiate education spending do not include federal flow-through funds, unless noted.

Virginia

Virginia saw a major budget increase for K-12 education as Gov. Mark Warner, a Democrat, persuaded enough lawmakers in the Republican-controlled legislature to approve his tax reforms and spending increases for education.

The budget changes come after three financially difficult years for the state. Revenues shrank after declines in manufacturing were coupled with drops in tourism in the Washington area following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack on the Pentagon in Arlington, Va.

Virginia’s $58.2 billion spending plan for fiscal 2005 and 2006 includes a $758 million increase for schools for the biennium, bringing state school aid to $9.2 billion. Roughly $377 million of the K-12 hike will be raised through a quarter-cent sales-tax increase.

Gov. Mark Warner
Democrat
Senate:
16 Democrats
24 Republicans

House:
37 Democrats
61 Republicans
2 Independents

Enrollment:
1.2 million (K-12)

The legislature spent a record length of time on the budget—including nearly two months in special session. After a $328 million projected surplus emerged, Republicans questioned the need for higher taxes, but made no changes to their plan.

The budget includes additional money to provide more planning time for teachers, more pre-school slots, and remedial help for struggling students. The budget also restores substantial funding to various areas and rainy-day funds that were tapped to prevent other cuts in recent years.

No state money was set aside specifically for pay raises for teachers, but school divisions, or districts, can use the major budget increase to offer raises.

Lawmakers also approved $1 million to continue Gov. Warner’s pilot program that offers school districts help from the state in identifying ways to spend money more efficiently.

—Alan Richard

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Mathematics Webinar
Pave the Path to Excellence in Math
Empower your students' math journey with Sue O'Connell, author of “Math in Practice” and “Navigating Numeracy.”
Content provided by hand2mind
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Recruitment & Retention Webinar
Combatting Teacher Shortages: Strategies for Classroom Balance and Learning Success
Learn from leaders in education as they share insights and strategies to support teachers and students.
Content provided by DreamBox Learning
Classroom Technology K-12 Essentials Forum Reading Instruction and AI: New Strategies for the Big Education Challenges of Our Time
Join the conversation as experts in the field explore these instructional pain points and offer game-changing guidance for K-12 leaders and educators.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: September 20, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education From Our Research Center What's on the Minds of Educators, in Charts
Politics, gender equity, and technology—how teachers and administrators say these issues are affecting the field.
1 min read
Stylized illustration of a pie chart
Traci Daberko for Education Week
Education Briefly Stated: August 30, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: August 23, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read