Commentary by Mayor Scott Fadness
It’s time to give kudos where it is due. Todd Huston and Brian Bosma helped fix a problem in our community this year.
The inequities in the school funding formula have been discussed a great deal over the last 12 months. Our school district was facing a significant financial crisis. Hamilton Southeastern Schools was the second lowest funded per pupil public school in the state, and as stated before, the next few years looked very troubling for our school system if more equity was not introduced in to the state funding formula.
When we started this initiative to change the formula, I spoke with several people that expressed a tremendous amount of skepticism about the ability to get anything done. Representative Huston and Speaker of the House Bosma recognized the issue immediately when we brought it to them and proceeded to get to work.
This was almost a year-long process, and I must say these two individuals never wavered in their commitment to see the problem fixed. As the dust settles on this legislative session, they have made true on their commitments. The state has taken a solid step in fixing the inequities in the funding formula. If you see Representative Huston or Speaker Bosma make sure to thank them for their work on this issue. I know the two of these individuals well and I am certain they are not expecting our gratitude, but they certainly deserve it.
