MN constitutional amendment on school funding

Fox 9 News at 9. It is the eve of historic midterm elections here in Minnesota. Already, a record number of people have voted early, and no matter which way the votes go tomorrow, Minnesota will see its first female governor. Polls are slated to open just 10 hours from now at 7 a.m., and they will stay open until 8 p.m. tomorrow night. Good evening. Thanks for joining us on Fox 9 and Fox Local. I'm Randy Meyer. And I'm Kelsey Carlson. We have comprehensive coverage of tomorrow's election, beginning with a constitutional amendment Minnesotans will see on their ballots. It would change the state's constitution to allow for more funding to flow into schools. Our Maury Glover joins us now. And Maury, a big thing proponents want voters to know is that this would not raise their taxes. That's right. No, it will not. The permanent school The trust fund has been around since Minnesota became a state. Voters will decide whether it should be modernized to give more money to the state schools. When voters head to the polls on Tuesday, they'll decide who will be Minnesota's next governor and U.S. senator. But they will also determine if the state's schools get more money without affecting property taxes. I think it's a no-brainer, and I think it's about time. A question on the ballot asks if the Minnesota Constitution should be amended to increase the funding going to all school districts from the permanent school fund. Right now, districts receive 2.5% of the fund's value, but that would go up to 4.5%, or jump from $68 to $101 per pupil if the measure passes. One of the ways I like to think about this is that the money has already been collected to the trust. This is just a modern way of distributing it. The fund was established in 1858 to provide long-term support for public education through money collected in rents and royalties on millions of acres of public land. Over the last 15 years, the fund has grown from $675 million to more than $2.3 billion. But the formula used to distribute the money hasn't changed with the times. We know that districts are really pinched with inflationary costs, whether it's labor, diesel costs, construction costs, that we know that any dollar amount is going to help our public schools. Advocates say the extra $28 million would help schools across the state at a time when many are facing budget shortfalls. But they also warn voters not to skip the question because a blank vote would be a no vote for both current and future generations. This is a small amount of money that's going to make a meaningful difference. It might save a teacher, might save a program, but we're at couch cushion time. We're looking under every couch cushion for education to fund our schools. Now, the amendment requires a simple majority to pass. If it does, the changes would take effect on July 1st next year. Back to you. All right, Maury, thank you.