Utah stacks 'em deep, teaches 'em cheap

Is there any guarantee that lawmakers will give education general fund appropriations if income tax revenues fall short? They have in the past, though they are not legally required to. My fear is that local school districts will have to make up shortfalls, which means higher local property taxes. But many school districts are already maxed out on that option. Then what?

We're all counting on a trickle down from a more robust economy. Lowering Utah's personal income tax rate will put it about par with other surrounding states. Then what does Utah do to distinguish itself? Utah's economic development history has been a mixed bag. There have been some smashing successes, many of them home-grown companies, which bodes well for the Utah Science Technology and Research Initiative, which aims to commercialize Utah innovations sooner.

But there have also been some abject failures. Ziff-Davis, anyone? It remains to be seen if the Micron jobs materialize.

At the risk of sounding like Eeyore, the West has long been vulnerable to economic booms and busts. We hope to ride this current wave of prosperity for a good while, but nationally, there are signs the economy is slowing down.

Income tax reform seems to me to be a chicken-and-egg conundrum. We lower income tax to attract more economic development. But will business relocate to a place that has some of the largest class sizes in the country and the lowest per-pupil funding nationwide, not to mention a less than stellar college graduation rate?

What I really want to know is who decided that we had a surplus of income tax anyway? Walk into any neighborhood school and what you'll see is a surplus of needs. Yes, the $70 million set aside for tax reform has to be used for tax reform. It's all but a done deal. The real question is, will the Utah Legislature make meaningful investments in public and higher education with the larger surplus reportedly en route to state coffers?

They should because at some point these "efficiencies" aren't a plus. They shortchange the students who will become our future work force — and pay income taxes.

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Marjorie Cortez, who is weary of Utah's reputation for paltry education funding, is a Deseret Morning News editorial writer. E-mail: marjorie@desnews.com