Kansas Legislature Complies with Supreme Court Ruling, Increasing School Funding by $148.4 Million

Under pressure from the Kansas Supreme Court, the standoff in the state legislature came to an end late Wednesday, as legislators complied with the court's ruling by approving a significant increase in school funding. The legislation increases school funding by $148.4 million, an amount more than $5 million larger than what the court had ordered in its June 3 ruling.

The legislature came through on the twelfth day of a special session called on June 22 by Governor Kathleen Sebelius to address the court ruling that mandated increased funding for public schools, and five days after the court-ordered deadline of July 1. The special session had proved extremely political, as conflicting partisan ideologies led to an impasse in negotiations.

During the session, several legislators attempted to revive a previously unsuccessful attack on the judiciary's power to decide the school funding issue. Although the court had addressed and rejected the argument that the court's ruling violated the “separation of powers” in its June 3 ruling, a number of conservative legislators, predominantly in the House, continued to emphasize this argument rather than allocate the necessary funds.

Many of the legislators who argued that the court had overstepped its bounds supported a constitutional amendment designed to limit the court's power. An early version of the proposed amendment specified that only the legislature has the authority to determine school funding issues. When this amendment was voted down, Republican leaders focused instead on a measure blocking the court's ability to close schools.

By Saturday, a day after the deadline, a bi-partisan committee of House and Senate leaders had come to a funding agreement; however, conservative Republicans in the House continued to insist that any school funding package be tied to the approval of a constitutional amendment. With the deadline passed and no progress being made, the legislature adjourned until the 6 th .

As legislators left for the July 4 th weekend, the Kansas Supreme Court issued an order criticizing the legislature for not resolving the school funding issue during the special session. The court scheduled a hearing for Friday, July 8 to consider enjoining the expenditure of any funds for public schools, thereby closing down Kansas public schools, pending the legislature's compliance with the court's June 3 order to increase funding.

Saturday's order was a clear statement that the court has the power to enforce its ruling and is willing to take potentially drastic steps to do so. The order referred to closing schools as “a traditional judicial remedy [that] clearly respects the separation of powers between the legislative and judicial branches, ” and strongly implied that the court was leaning towards this response unless convinced otherwise in Friday's hearing.

The court's firm commitment to its earlier ruling raised the pressure on the legislature when it reconvened Wednesday. Wednesday afternoon, once the funding plan tied to the constitutional amendment had failed, House Speaker Doug Mays (R) agreed to consider the legislation and the amendment separately. The amendment was blocked in the House, while the funding plan passed both houses with support from Democrats and moderate Republicans. Governor Sebelius has pledged to sign the bill into law, which will mark the final step in averting the potentially disastrous sanctions that would have resulted from the legislature's non-compliance.

The outcome of the events in Kansas will have positive repercussions for education adequacy cases throughout the country. The principled response of the court and the ultimate compliance of the legislature reaffirm the legitimate role of the courts in ensuring that state education funding is at a constitutional level.

Prepared by Cara Suvall, July 7, 2005