Education officials ponder possible state shutdown

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- State education officials have begun to ponder the impact of a potential government shutdown if the budget impasse between the governor and lawmakers continues through July 1.

With less than two weeks before the beginning of the new fiscal year, the Republican-controlled legislature appears poised to reject Gov. Bob Holden's call to pass emergency spending bills for education during a special legislative session. Instead, Republican leaders have said they will send Holden the same spending bills for public schools, colleges and universities they passed earlier this week.

A local school official expressed concern over the possibility of state funding cuts.

"I can't imagine how we'd survive," said Jackson assistant superintendent Jim Welker. "We could get by for a little while, but eventually we'd have difficulty paying bills and making payroll."

The district will end this fiscal year with around $1.9 million in reserves, but that's only enough to fully operate for two months.

Welker said this would especially be a difficult time to stop receiving state aid since the district won't receive revenue from its second largest funding source -- local taxes -- until December or January.

"It's almost absurd to consider, because we have to have state aid to operate. We have to," Welker said. "I don't know what we would do without it."

Holden declined to say Thursday whether he would veto those bills again, or sign them into law.

Given the uncertainty, some have begun considering what would happen if there are no education budget bills in place on July 1.

First and foremost, it would be unlikely that public schools or state colleges would close. Most schools have enough money in reserve from other sources to continue operating for some time, and they don't typically receive their state payments until later in the month anyway.

But there could be a significant impact on some state educational services and the employees that administer them. And there could be constitutional snags that cause a financial ripple effect throughout state government.

The Missouri Constitution requires appropriations by the legislature to be made first to the state's debt, then to public education before going to any other parts of government.

Holden's legal counsel, David Cosgrove, said the requirement poses an "interesting questioning" about whether other agencies could receive money if public schools cannot. Cosgrove said he was still studying the issue.

The constitution also requires that 25 percent of state revenue annually go to public schools. Cosgrove said that section poses no problem at the start of a fiscal year, so long as schools would eventually get their share.

Holden said Thursday his options include vetoing those education bills a third time if lawmakers send him the same versions and fail to approve a 90-day emergency spending plan.

Staff writer Callie Clark contributed to this report.