Panel Approves Lower Aid Amounts For Kansas Schools

Several school districts in Kansas get less than half the emergency aid they were seeking under measures a state panel approved.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports 38 districts, including some of the state’s largest, were vying for $12.3 million in emergency funds that had been allotted by lawmakers for this purpose last March. The districts had submitted requests for aid totaling $15.07 million.

The State Finance Council, which includes Gov. Sam Brownback and eight legislative leaders, granted about $2 million total to 13 school districts experiencing considerable growth in student enrollment this year.

The panel granted another $4 million to 22 districts that lost local revenue for this school year because of declines in the valuation of oil and gas properties. Most of those districts are in western Kansas.