Concerns over whether a proposed multibillion dollar investment in Maryland’s public education system will be worth the cost intensified as the House of Delegates approved the bill on Friday.
The Associated Press reported that the House voted 96-41 in favor of a measure based on recommendations by the state-funded Kirwan Commission.
The commission spent three years looking at how to improve Maryland’s public school system on areas such as early childhood education, career readiness and aid for struggling schools.
More than a dozen Republican amendments were voted down before its passage along party lines. Chief among Republican concerns was how much money this effort will take, and more pertinently, where it’s going to come from.
“All this begs the question again: How’s this thing going to be paid for? Well, apparently we’re going to jack up taxes to the tune of about $700 million or so this year,” Delegate Haven Shoemaker, R-Carroll County, said, adding that state-level tax increases will be joined by those at the local level as well.
“Bottom line is this: The massive spending spree is fraught with uncertainty. And the taxpayers of this state are gonna foot the bill for the gamble.”
One solution explored was expanding the state sales tax to services including barbers, lawyers and real estate agents, but that was voted down earlier this week.
Other Republicans, such as Del. Trent Kittleman of Howard County, challenged the dichotomy of wanting to help schools by supporting Kirwan’s recommendations, or settling for mediocre schools.
Meanwhile, Democratic lawmakers framed the commission’s recommendations as a vow to improve the experience for current and future students.
“You can debate some of the details of the bill and quibble about different points and argue about how we’re going to pay for it 10 years down the road, but you know how I look at this bill? I look at this bill as a promise,” Del. Eric Leudtke, D-Montgomery County.
“It’s a promise to every kid in the state of Maryland that we believe in them and that we want the best for them.”
The Senate will take up this version of the bill on Monday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
