Governor vetoes bill affecting rural school districts

 

Sacramento — Governor Gray Davis vetoed Assemblyman Dave Cogdill’s (Modesto) Assembly Bill 2803, which would have studied California’s outdated student transportation funding formula.

“If you ask any rural school district administrator he will tell you that this is a serious problem,” said Mr. Cogdill. “They have been consistently under-funded for years.”

School districts typically receive funding from the state to cover some of their student transportation needs. Any additional costs must be paid from other district funding sources, many times taking money out of the classroom. For most rural districts this budget can be one of their largest expenses.

“Sadly, Governor Davis has chosen to ignore the needs of our rural school districts,” Cogdill said. “Davis received dozens of letters from districts across the state, urging him to sign the bill.”

AB 2803 also received unanimous and bi-partisan support in the legislature and did not receive a single “no” vote.  Cogdill will continue to pursue equitable funding treatment for rural school districts.

“By vetoing this bill he is trying to suppress any new evidence that show that this is a problem. Clearly, the governor is hoping to sweep this issue under the rug,” Cogdill said. “He is counting on the fact that since this is mostly a rural issue, no one will notice.”