Show KNOW YOUR SCHOOLS Finances And The 1957 Legislature j By Rowan C. Stutz Two finance plans for financing the Utah Public Schools have been presented to the The Coordinating Council on representing five statewide organizations with a combined of about will propose a program containing the following Increase of the distribution unit from to distribution unit is roughly defined as 27 pupils in average dally Increase of the permissive local tax leeway by action of the local board from 20 per cent of the basic state-supported school program to 30 per cent of the basic slate-supported school Removal of the limit on the taxing authority of local school districts with the approval of the local citizens at a special Change of the ratio of professional certificated teaching personnel to certificated non-teaching personnel to encourage improved school Clarification of the law and an increase of state funds for pupil and Provision for financing research studies of school problems by the State Board of Educations from the Uniform School An Annual Increase This proposal would mean an annual increase of approximately in revenue for operating the schools in this school district without an increase in the local property levy This amounts to about 00 per student enroLled in our schools A second plan has been prepared I by the Utah Legislative Council 1 proposing an increase in the dis unit from to j The other details of this proposal are not Tins proposal would increase revenue for the maintenance and operation of our county schools by approximately or per The Duchesne County Board of Education at its January meeting j gave its full endorsement to the 1 Coordinating Councils proposal as j the one which more realistically meets the very critical situation in local school During the school the Duchesne County School District spent per child for j Other operating ex amounted to per pupil bringing the total operating costs per pupil to for the school O amount 86 was spent for Due to our ext trans system of all students l on school busses to this cost is higher in this district than in most Per Pupil Compared to our of 86 per the average for the whole of the United States was estimated to be 00 for last year Costs in rural areas arc generally ex to considerably exceed the average costs Because of larger larger larger administrative larger centers are able to provide quality education for quite a bit lower per pupil In Utah last the average expenditures per pupil was If the average expenditures in Utah is increased to the average which is estimated to be per Student this we will need an increase of at least per pupil to keep somewhere near in a position to maintain an adequate school It becomes extremely important therefore that the State Legislature must give sincere consideration to the proposal of the Utah Council and must as wholly inadequate any al that would increase the unit to less than |