Show PROPOSED PRO POSED SCHOOL amendments the he following Is the first of a series of articles furnished through the utah education association the intention is to acquaint acau aint the voters with tile the constitutional a mend that are to be voted on oil in the november election the two proposed constitutional amendments dealing with financing our public schools that will be voted on in the november election will increase am ase the powers of the legislature in dealing with the manner of financing public schools had the constitution been left in the form in im which it was wag written lit in 1890 then it would not now be necessary to propose these amendments to the constitution to give the legislature power to deal with this problem of financing the district schools at thab that time am 44 power was waa given ghen to the legislature to establish and maintain a unia form system of public schools throughout the state but since then in the proem process of providing our existing state school funds amendments have been inserted A the constitution containing language which limits the revenue aTal available lable tor for the district schools to the amount specified in the existing funds the state levie on tangible prop orty city are definitely limited to the necessary to raise these three state school funds and it if revenue la IS provided from other tax soure tor for either cither district school or equalization purposes then the constitution that such other roT revenue onue must moat OWN the pur pa pose of reducing the levies on tangible property pio perty rather than increasing the amount of money tor for the district schools these provisions serve the purpose ot of limiting the levy on tangible property ty for tate school funds but they often have the effect of forcing the levy on tangible property to higher mill rates in many of 0 tle the school districts of tho the state this arrangement makes it impossible toi for many of the districts to get adequate revenue in spite of local mila levies the addition of these state funds constituted a district step for forward wiard in the solution of school finance problems but the aro are now inadequate to meet the needia and recent happenings ha have made conditions worse rather than betterin the first pla place the 11 value of tangible property has declined over oer the last number of yeats to the extent of approximately 20 per cent tor for the state as a whole but in many of the school districts the reduction 6 has been much more than this with this declining assessed assef fied value lu in the local districts and state school funds rigidly limited the chool finance situation in many of the forty school districts hais haa become extremely difficult in many ot of the school districts over the last number of years this situation has been met by increasing the local mill rates imposed on tangible property pio porty this Is a very ery unfortunate situation from the point of view of both our schools and our system 0 of f taxation the tangible property tax la Is already bearing too and it la is heavy a tax burden very unfortunate situation where the only means of maintaining funds for the schools is by increasing the mill rates on OIL this oils property the adopt adoption lon of the constitutional amendments will open the way for the legislature to secure finances for the public schools from other revenue sources instead ot of increasing the tax burden on property under the amendments to the constitution no revenue in the new uniform school provided tor for by the amendments can call be derived from the taxation of tangible property this will make it P possible ible to transfer part of the burden tor for the support of if the schools to other revenue sources the amendments have great significance from the point of if view of tax reforms as well as school flu finance ance |