Tax shift OK, not tax hike

Money for schools and education-choice issues are the makings of political pugilism on Capitol Hill this legislative session.

In one corner is Gov. Olene Walker, backed by public education officials, fighting for more than $100 million — minimum — in new money for schools, and a series of tax and revenue shifts to make it all happen.

In the other corner are legislators facing re-election and a delicate economy, and advocates battling to reform schools and state spending.

And lining the ring are Utah residents, whose sometimes closely split opinions don't provide much guidance.

One thing appears clear: Utahns oppose a tax increase — 56 percent of residents surveyed by Dan Jones & Associates are against property tax increases and 64 percent frowned on income tax hikes. The Deseret Morning News/KSL poll has a 5 percent margin of error on either side.

But when Jones asked respondents in a different question, they warm to the idea of shifting existing tax revenues to public schools. While half would oppose a gas tax hike, 58 percent of the some 400 adults polled in late December and early January said they strongly or somewhat favor taking sales tax money out of road and water development funds and giving it to education.

That's one of the ideas Gov. Olene Walker proposes that would bring schools an additional $115.8 million, including $25 million for kindergarten through third-grade reading help and a 2.54 percent hike to the state's basic per-student funding formula.

But it looks as if legislators could give the one-two knockout punch to her money-gathering methods, which some say would require tax increases down the road.

"I think the Legislature is pretty sympathetic and interested in looking at this reading initiative the governor has talked about," said House Speaker Marty Stephens, R-Farr West. "But her (funding) plan doesn't work unless you're willing to buy into a tax increase next year. When your economy is just coming out of a recession, it doesn't make sense to raise taxes and kill the recovery in this state."

Public education, which takes up about one-third of the state's budget, is a perennial battle in Utah, where schools get the fewest per-student dollars in the country, despite a relatively high tax burden.

Some policymakers think schools need more money because their rolls are expected to bulge by 140,000 new students over the next decade.

And there is some talk about delivering that extra financial support.