CAPE GIRARDEAU SCHOOL BOARD AGREES TO ONE-TIME HOLD-HARMLESS CONTRIBUTION

The Cape Girardeau Board of Education approved a one-time financial contribution to a coalition of hold-harmless school districts during a special board meeting Wednesday.

Board members approved a contribution of $3,898 to the Hold Harmless Coalition to help pay costs incurred by a legislative consultant.

Bradley Ketcher, an attorney who lives in Webster Groves and is a former chief of staff for Gov. Mel Carnahan, will assist the coalition in handling legislative issues through the end of the year. Each school district in the 51-member coalition was asked to donate $1 per student to cover Ketcher's expenses through January.

The contributions will be used to pay for travel, administrative and other costs as Ketcher pushes for passage of legislation that relieves the financial burden many hold-harmless school districts incur.

Superintendent Dr. Dan Steska said many hold-harmless school districts, including Cape Girardeau and Webster Groves, struggle annually to meet state programming requirements and other necessities on limited budgets. Ketcher's short-term efforts could mean enormous financial gains if legislation to provide more funding to hold-harmless school districts is approved.

"This is an organized effort to speak on behalf of hold-harmless schools in speaking to legislature, in particular," said Steska. "If this is successful, it could mean hundreds of thousands of dollars for our school district."

The hold-harmless designation was created with the passage of Senate Bill 380 in 1993. Under the legislation, which redesigned the formula used to distribute state educational funding, hold-harmless districts essentially would receive no less amount per pupil than it received in 1993.