— Ask public education to conduct the same wholesale review of the school system, and involve a diverse spectrum of expertise in the process. Although the education budget is stretched, we owe it to the taxpayer citizens of Utah to search aggressively for savings. The Matheson CARB Diet applies especially here, because savings in administrative overhead costs and elimination of redundant testing and reporting requirements can be well-invested in the classroom. The Utah school system has less administrative overhead than counterparts in other states, but we should continue to find appropriate cost-saving measures that will put more money into our classrooms. I will also support incentives for each school district that is able to shift funds from non-instructional functions and into classroom teaching.

D. School LAND Trust Program — At statehood, Utah received millions of acres of land to be held in trust for the benefit of public schools. Revenue produced from these parcels goes into the Permanent School Fund, and interest income from the fund goes directly to our schools for their greatest needs. Much progress has been made to manage these lands and the revenues they produce to increase resources available to education. We need to continue with best efforts to build up the Permanent School Fund as a larger source of support for our schools. Part of those efforts should include a reinvigorated effort to trade isolated trust land parcels for more economically productive lands.

E. Federal Dollars, No Strings — Education should remain a local responsibility. Utah's Governor must lead the fight against the federal government to keep it that way. The state also must take full advantage of federal resources available for education, including Title I, Head Start, School Lunch, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and other program funding. The task is to maximize federal resources because we need all we can get, and to preserve local control because parents and teachers know what we need.

F. Payments for Federal Lands — Almost two-thirds of Utah is federal land that is not subject to property taxes. Our tax base to support education would be much larger if this were not the case. As a matter of fairness, counties receive from the federal government payments in lieu of taxes (PILT) to compensate them for the federal land not subject to tax. But the current payments do not nearly make up the difference in lost tax base. In the name of education and equity, the Governor and all leaders from the public land states in the West should mount an aggressive campaign for federal legislation to increase the PILT payments, with some of the increase going to support local classroom instruction.