Casino Lockbox Is an Important First Step for Strengthening Maryland Schools; Now Policymakers Should Finish the Job

November 20, 2018 by Christopher Meyer in Blog, Education

Maryland took an important step toward guaranteeing all children a great education on Election Day, as voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment requiring gambling revenues to add to school funding rather than replacing existing funding. This amendment (informally called the “lockbox”) will fulfill the promise policymakers made when the state expanded gambling in 2007 and 2012. At the same time, it is only a first step to making up the lost ground from a decade of eroding investments in public schools. The Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education (the Kirwan Commission) is expected to take the next step in December by recommending a far-reaching package of reforms aimed at making Maryland schools among the best in the world. When lawmakers convene during next year’s legislative session, they should finish the job by passing and fully funding a robust reform package based on the commission’s recommendations.

Four factors have brought Maryland schools to where they are today:

  • Bridge to Excellence in Public Schools Act: The General Assembly passed this law in 2002. It ramped up school funding based on an analysis of what schools needed to achieve the state’s academic standards at the time. In the years after this law was enacted, the state significantly increased school funding and saw improvements in test scores.
  • Gambling expansion: Voters approved ballot measures in 2007 and 2012 to allow and then expand casino gambling in Maryland. These measures earmarked a large portion of casino revenues to public schools, creating a widespread impression that the state would be able to expand its investments in education as a result. But once the casinos opened, policymakers used a loophole to comply with the letter of the law while effectively using the new money to fill other holes in the budget.
  • Response to the Great Recession: State and local revenues took a big hit in the aftermath of the downturn and grew slowly as the economy recovered. Without the option to borrow money for operating costs, policymakers had to choose between increasing revenues and cutting services. They largely chose the second path, drawing back investments in public schools and other foundations of Maryland’s economy. Policymakers stopped cutting deeper once state finances began to recover, but they never reversed the cuts made in prior years. As a result, underfunding is now baked into our school funding formula.
  • Maryland College- and Career-Ready Standards: In the same years that policymakers were cutting school funding, they also raised expectations for schools and students. The state’s new academic standards, and the accompanying PARCC tests, have meant that schools are now aiming higher than ever—and doing it with fewer resources. While ambitious academic goals are laudable, they’re only realistic if backed with the resources needed to achieve them.

These cuts fell especially hard on students of color. For example, by 2015, more than half of Maryland’s Black students attended school districts that were underfunded by 15 percent or more, compared to only 1 in 12 white students.

Putting it all together, we now underfund Maryland schools by nearly $3 billion annually. That’s partly because we’re not meeting the standard we set for ourselves in 2002 through the Bridge to Excellence law, and partly because we’ve raised academic expectations since then.

The casino lockbox is a good start to getting back on track. For context, gambling revenue earmarked for schools comes to a little over $500 million in the state’s current budget—about 8 percent of all state aid for public schools. If casino revenues grow at a similar rate to education costs, that means Maryland schools will have about 8 percent more to work with by the time the amendment takes full effect in 2023.

That’s an important step forward. The next step is to enact and fully fund a robust reform package to guarantee that public schools in every part of Maryland have the support they need to provide an excellent education. The Kirwan Commission is now putting the finishing touches on such a package. Based on the commission’s work so far, its proposals will likely include improved teacher pay, more time for teachers to collaborate, revamped curricula, and services like physical and behavioral health to ensure that students go to school ready to learn. High-quality research shows that strategies like these can help students succeed in the classroom and later in life—provided that they are backed with sufficient resources.

The question is, do lawmakers and the governor have the will to turn the commission’s vision into reality?