Universal preschool is a terrific idea and a proven way to ensure all kids start school ready to learn. So why not vote for Mayor John Hickenlooper’s Referred Question 1A, and pay a mere 12 cents tax per $100 purchase to help fund preschool for Denver 4-year-olds?
Here’s why not:
Denver has a whole menu of unfunded new and deferred capital needs, perhaps totaling $1 billion or more. They range from serious structural problems with the Botanic Gardens’ historic Boettcher Conservatory and long-deferred new libraries and parks improvements to the city’s inefficient, obsolete irrigation system, vulnerable tree canopy, roads, bridges and antiquated public building systems.
The mayor has convened more than 100 people to sort through and prioritize a long list of capital improvement and maintenance needs. The final funding request is headed for the November 2007 ballot. It’s unclear whether the mechanism will be a property tax increase or some combination of funding strategies.
Is now the right time to increase Denver’s sales tax? Or should voters be presented with the full picture of the city’s needs?
There are other problems with this proposal.
Money will be distributed on a sliding scale based on two criteria: need and quality of the preschool selected. Any preschool in the metro-area serving 4-year-olds will be eligible, even though Denver sales taxes fund the program.
The Denver Preschool Program must adopt an evaluation protocol to measure the quality and accountability of early childhood programs. There is not yet a statewide, metro or even Denver program that evaluates all preschools, matching family needs with school quality. Setting up a comprehensive program will be costly and time-consuming. And though 1A touts language limiting administrative costs to 5 percent, will a projected $600,000 cover the cost of designing and implementing a program or even contracting with an expert?
Why won’t the anticipated $12 million annual revenue go solely to disadvantaged families who really need public subsidy for preschool?
Any Denver family can apply. The money will be distributed on a sliding scale by a nine-member board of directors, according to policies unstated in the legislation and evaluation methods that aren’t in place.
Backers claim 90 percent of the funds will go to needy families. Why not 100 percent?
The American Civil Liberties Union and the Anti-Defamation League oppose the initiative. Both object to the possibility that public funds will be used for preschool programs run by religious organizations. The ADL cites a never-tested state constitutional ban on spending public money for religious institutions. There’s disagreement about whether a recent Supreme Court decision prohibiting the use of public funds for religious education would apply. But, why waste time and money on a lawsuit?
Denver Public Schools offers 4-year-old preschool in all but three of its elementary schools and serves 4,000 Denver children. The program is free to kids who qualify for reduced lunch according to federal guidelines (a family of four earning about $35,800 annually). Families earning more than $100,000 per year pay $195 a month for half-day, weekday preschool.
DPS contracts with other Denver providers to serve families needing all-day preschool, meeting the needs of nearly 500 of these families.
There are waiting lists at numerous DPS schools. Why didn’t 1A supporters expand this program instead of re-inventing the wheel? There are advantages:
- DPS is governed by an elected board that is fully accountable to e taxpayers.
- DPS can blend a variety of funding mechanisms – tuition, federal Head Start funds, private grants, etc. – to meet the diverse needs of Denver families.
- DPS has administration in place, already funded with public dollars.
Preschool for 4-year-olds is a noble idea. The benefits are well-documented. But however well intended, Question 1A is not the right approach.
Preschool is not part of the city’s basic mission and a daunting list of infrastructure improvements is a higher priority. The regressive, Denver-only sales tax portable to metro preschools is inappropriate. Like all school funding, the preschool tax should be property-tax-based, applied to the region and available to all metro families.
Finally, there are too many unknowns. Who are the private citizens administering public dollars? What are the governing rules, policies and regulations? How will preschool programs be fairly and universally evaluated?
Too many questions and not enough answers. Vote “no” on Denver’s Initiative 1A.
Susan Barnes-Gelt (bs13@qwest.net) served eight years on the Denver City Council and was an aide to former Denver Mayor Federico Peña.
