Controversial district-split bill to change again

A controversial bill to clarify rules in splitting up school districts, brought on by issues in the Jordan District division, is changing again.

Sen. Carlene Walker, R-Cottonwood Heights, says she wants to amend her SB71 to consider overcrowding when placing a value on schools to be divvied up. Basically, west-side buildings' value will account for kids in portable classrooms, and help determine whether the building's space is inadequate.

That likely would pull down the value of several overcrowded west-side buildings, even though they are generally newer and could be worth more than aging east-side buildings. That's significant, because taking building value into account opens the door for the other side to pony up for inadequacies, be they due to space constraints or age.

Walker on Wednesday told the Deseret Morning News the idea comes after a meeting with Senate Republicans and legislators representing Jordan District's west side.

"I'm bending over backward to make sure everyone feels this is not a dump on the west side," Walker said. "We want it to be fair, we want it to be equitable, and we're struggling with that."

But House Speaker Greg Curtis, R-Sandy, who, like Walker, represents the new east-side school district, wonders if Walker's amendment could be overkill.

"Valuation of assets is an idea that's just supposed to value assets," Curtis said. "It should not be as complicated as everybody's making it."

The bill already has been substituted twice and awaits debate in the full Senate. Most recently, a provision allowing closed-door talks about who gets what in the Jordan School District split was taken out following public outcry.

Walker acknowledged she is looking not only for the votes of west-side legislators, but also to create public policy solid enough to apply to any other districts wanting to break up. There have been recent efforts to split up both Alpine and Granite school districts.

Voters in the east-side Jordan District voted to secede last November.

Transition teams for the east and west sides of Jordan District have been meeting to go about equitably and fairly dividing district assets and liabilities, as spelled out in state law. The west team wants to take out of negotiations school buildings located in each other's boundaries, mainly to simplify the task. So, what's in the west belongs to the west, and what's in the east is the east's. Special programs like Valley High alternative school would be negotiated.