Missouri School Funding Adequacy Trial

The Missouri school funding adequacy trial has already cost taxpayers millions of dollars that should have been used for their children’s education. Judge Callahan of the Cole County circuit court recently upheld the State’s funding formula, but the plaintiff school districts have said they will continue to sue the state for an additional billion dollars, despite the judge’s opinion that the constitution doesn’t allow the courts to usurp lawmakers on this issue.

With only six weeks left before the trial, the Attorney General’s office had only deposed 2 witnesses. Realizing the Attorney General could not adequately defend taxpayers, Bevis Schock, Menlo Smith and Rex Sinquefield made an appeal to the judge and, in a move unprecedented in US history, these local taxpayers were allowed to intervene on behalf of taxpayers against this Constitutional threat. In the defense of Missouri’s taxpayers, the intervenors did not use public funds in the trial. Sinquefield gave a private donation of more than $750,000 to pay for attorney fees, expert witnesses and trial preparation expenses as attorney Josh Schindler immediately went to work pulling together more than 60 depositions.

Missourians and their legislators agree that education is a top priority for the state budget. What is less agreed upon is exactly what amount is sufficient to educate Missouri’s students adequately. Currently, over one-third of the state budget is spent on K-12 education. The Committee for Educational Equality, the Committee to Fund Excellent Schools, and the St. Louis City public school board (plaintiffs) have said they will appeal to the state Supreme Court despite having no proof that increased spending will result in student achievement, no alternate plans if schools don’t improve, and no definition of success.

What does this mean for Missourians? It’s not just an increase in taxes and/or loss of other valuable state programs. The plaintiff school districts are taking money that is supposed to go to students to pay for a frivolous lawsuit, so taxpayers cannot trust that an increase in spending will be used wisely.

More Information

For links to news articles about the school funding adequacy trial in which Joshua Schindler of The Schindler Law Firm is participating, please visit:

www.schoolchoiceformissouri.org/trial