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EDGEWOOD ISD V. KIRBY (1989) DECISION

The Texas Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the state’s public school finance system was a violation of Article VII, Section 1 of the Texas Constitution. Justice Oscar Mauzy wrote the opinion for the Court: “There are glaring disparities in the abilities of the various school districts to raise revenues from property taxes because taxable property wealth varies greatly from district to district. The wealthiest district has over $14,000,000 of property wealth per student, while the poorest has approximately $20,000; this disparity reflects a 700 to 1 ratio. The 300,000 students in the lowest-wealth schools have less than 3 percent of the state’s property wealth to support their education while the 300,000 students in the highest-wealth schools have over 25 percent of the state’s property wealth; thus the 300,000 students in the wealthiest districts have more than eight times the property value to support their education as the 300,000 students in the poorest districts. … Because of the disparities in district property wealth, spending per student varies widely, ranging from $2,112 to $19,333. … The lower expenditures in the property-poor districts are not the result of lack of tax effort. Generally, the property-rich districts can tax low and spend high while the property-poor districts must tax high merely to spend low. … Property-poor districts are trapped in a cycle of poverty from which there is no opportunity to free themselves. …

“The amount of money spent on a student’s education has a real and meaningful impact on the educational opportunity offered to that student. High-wealth districts are able to provide for their students broader educational experiences including more extensive curricula, more up-to-date technological equipment, better libraries and library personnel, teacher aides, counseling services, lower student-teacher ratios, better facilities, parental involvement programs, and drop-out prevention programs. … The differences in the quality of educational programs offered are dramatic. For example, San Elizario I.S.D. offers no foreign language, no pre-kindergarten program, no chemistry, no physics, no calculus, and no college preparatory or honors program. It also offers virtually no extracurricular activities such as band, debate, or football. …

“Considering ‘the general spirit of the times and the prevailing sentiments of the people,’ it is apparent from the historical record that those who drafted and ratified Article VII, Section 1 never contemplated the possibility that such gross inequalities could exist within an ‘efficient’ system. … The legislature’s recent efforts have focused primarily on increasing the state’s contributions. More money allocated under the present system would reduce some of the existing disparities between districts but would at best only postpone the reform that is necessary to make the system efficient. A band-aid will not suffice; the system itself must be changed. … Children who live in poor districts and children who live in rich districts must be afforded a substantially equal opportunity to have access to educational funds. Certainly this much is required if the state is to educate its populace efficiently and provide for a general diffusion of knowledge statewide.”