RE: school budget cuts/prison expenditures & weapons

[Steve Cooke <scooke@uidaho.edu>]

Dear Visionaries,
 This discussion begins to raise the relationship and associated tradeoff 
between education funding, prison costs, and the availability of firearms. 
The share of the education budget at the state level is decreasing as a 
percentage of general fund appropriations. The Corrections budget, on the 
other hand, is increasing as a percent of the total.  I think John and 
Louise raise interesting and important points.
Steve Cooke

-----Original Message-----
From:	Louise D. Barber [SMTP:louiseb@moscow.com]
Sent:	Wednesday, May 05, 1999 8:36 AM
To:	vision2020@moscow.com
Subject:	school budget cuts/prison expenditures

At the school board meeting last night John Danahy led into an interesting
topic.  In response to a question about how can we do something about the
state school funding problem, he said that people could begin to make it
clear to the legislature whether they would rather fund schools adequately
or prisons.

I don't know how many people in the audience realized how serious his
comment might be taken, but it's serious enough that the state League of
Women Voters is currently embarking on a study of just this subject.
Tonight at 7:00 at Mardi Baron's (925 East B, Moscow) is the local LWV's
annual meeting.  Some background for the study will be presented.  The
title is "Idaho Gets Tough on Crime:  Who Benefits, Who Pays?"

Idaho has some (more!) very serious issues to face, but the relationship
between prisons and schools is quite real.

League would really love to see increased membership, but if you can't
join, you can participate sort of de facto, be informed, and be vocal.  We
have to begin to get responsible reactions to serious issues in Boise.

Louise Barber