McDonnell's school budget sets Virginia's students up to fail

January 6, 2012

Governor Bob McDonnell's budget will cost Danville schools $5 million in funding and Charlottesville schools $4 million. Fairfax County schools are deteriorating and need $50 million more a year just to catch up with repairs, and this year 300 fewer Virginia schools were recognized for top performance compared with last year.

Progressive Point: Strong schools are an essential investment in the future success of our children and our economy. Governor Bob McDonnell's budget will devastate schools in communities across the Commonwealth. Cutting necessary school funding will demolish our children's education at a time when so many schools are in need of repair. It's clear that McDonnell's cuts-only approach to the budget is absolutely wrong for Virginia's families.

Children need a good education to prepare them to thrive in an increasingly competitive global economy. Keeping tax breaks for coal companies and yacht purchases rather than paying to educate our children is the wrong decision.

Pass the Buck Bob's budget shows he doesn't share Virginia's values. Our legislators and localities must make sure that he doesn't leave our children out in the cold. Cutting crucial funding for our schools is absolutely wrong for Virginia. We must invest in our students to help them reach their full potential, and not allow Bob McDonnell to pass on our future.

Get the Facts:

• Governor McDonnell's budget if passed will cost Charlottesville schools $4 million (Daily Progress, January 6, 2012)


• The Governor's budget will also cost Danville schools $5 million. (GoDanRiver, January 5, 2012)


• Fairfax schools are falling apart and are underfunded by $50 million in order to just keep up with school facility needs each year. (Washington Post, January 5, 2012)


• 300 fewer Virginia schools were recognized yesterday for top performance than were last year, "as more campuses failed to meet testing benchmarks from both the federal and state governments." (Washington Examiner, January 5, 2012)


• Prince William County's "81,000-student school system has struggled to keep pace with an increasing student population. County officials anticipate that the schools will need to hire 8,000 teachers over the next 10 years and plans to add 12 schools at a cost of more than $1 billion. County officials are asking, among other requests, that the state allocate funds to build schools, keep pace with state benchmarks for test scores and continue to fund annual teacher salary increases." (Washington Post, January 5, 2012)


• Virginia loses $12.5 billion in revenue a year through credits and giveaways that receive little-to-no scrutiny and accountability. (JLARC) The most egregious include:
  • Over 60% of Virginia corporations pay no income tax in Virginia, while all families in the Commonwealth are taxed on their income.
  
  
  • In 2008, coal companies received $31 million in tax breaks designed to slow layoffs in the industry. Instead, unemployment increased even more quickly than anticipated.
  
  
  • Sales taxes on yacht purchases are capped at just 2%, providing a huge tax break to buyers of a $100,000 yacht while Virginia families pay the full sales tax rate on their purchases.

Tweet it: McDonnell's school budget sets Virginia's students up to fail http://bit.ly/zoBKxG #passthebuckbob via @ProgressVA

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