Supreme Court Orders Legislature To Find Millions More For Schools

June 3-- The Kansas Supreme Court today ordered the
Legislature to double the amount of new dollars the state spends on
public schools during the next school year.

The decision means legislators will have to find an additional
143 million on top of the 142 million they provided earlier
this year.

It is a stunning setback for Republican legislative leaders who
had not expected the court to tell them exactly how much money to
spend. The court ordered the Legislature to come up with the money
by July first. That will require lawmakers to return to Topeka in
special session for the first time in 15 years.

The original plan provided a five percent increase in aid to the
state's 300 school districts and gave those district more authority
to increase local property taxes.