Deukmejian Offers an Extra $97 Million for Schools : Education: But the governor attaches strings, requiring that the money go to specific purposes and not to boost teacher salaries.

Gov. George Deukmejian on Thursday offered to free up $97 million for public schools in 1990-91 but insisted that the money be spent for specific purposes and not left to the discretion of local school districts.

Instead of requiring the schools to keep a statewide reserve of $300 million next year, he would reduce the reserve to $200 million and send most of the other $100 million to local school districts for maintenance, portable classrooms, textbooks and school buses, Deukmejian told a Capitol news conference.

Districts would not be able to use the money for educational programs or teacher salaries.

The governor continued to insist that $220 million be spent next year on reducing California’s class size, which is among the highest in the nation. The money would be used to improve language arts instruction in grades one, two and three and to lower the pupil-teacher ratio to 20 to 1 in one academic subject in any one grade in all of the state’s high schools.

“It’s about time that we took a good hard look at our priorities, and recognized that one of the best ways we can improve the quality of education is to give our students more individual attention in the classroom,” Deukmejian said.

The $220 million needed to make class-size reduction possible would be part of the savings produced by cutting the schools’ increase in basic operating costs from the 4.76% that was included in the 1990-91 budget that was passed by the Legislature to the 3% contained in the final budget signed by the governor.

The Deukmejian proposals immediately ran into strong criticism from key legislators and educational leaders.

“The proposal will not fly as currently constituted,” said state Sen. Gary K. Hart (D-Santa Barbara), chairman of the Senate Education Committee.

Hart said the plan seems to be at odds with the governor’s general support for local control because it tells school districts specifically how to spend the $97 million.

State Sen. Becky Morgan (R-Los Altos Hills), an influential Senate voice on education issues, also indicated disagreement with the idea of earmarking the money.

“The Republican (Senate) Caucus still believes in local control,” she said.

At a news conference after the governor’s, state Supt. of Public Instruction Bill Honig said local school boards and officials, and not the state, should decide how to spend the money.

“Districts and boards are much closer to reality and they can make the decisions,” Honig said. “I don’t want that power to be usurped up here.”

Deukmejian, who once scoffed at the idea that smaller class size would improve student performance, said he has changed his mind because “current studies” indicate that having fewer students in a class does improve individual achievement.

But the governor said he wants to be sure the money goes for class-size reduction, and not for higher teacher salaries.

He said California teachers, who average almost $39,000 a year in salary, are “well paid” for jobs that usually last only 10 months and include “quite a few holidays.”

That comment angered Ed Foglia, president of the California Teachers Assn., who said: “Teachers need respectable wages. Other countries we compete with, like Germany and Japan, pay teachers well, but there is a myth that in America we don’t have to do that.”

Deukmejian “wants to do just one thing and that is to get the teachers of the state of California,” he said.

In addition to the $220 million for class-size reduction and the $97 million for other earmarked projects, Deukmejian also proposed restoring funds for the state’s highly acclaimed California Assessment Program, for year-round school incentives, for driver training, Indian education centers and other programs. However, financial details for most of these proposals were lacking.

Next week all of these changes will be included in amendments that Assemblyman Pat Nolan (R-Glendale) will introduce in a bill by fellow Assemblyman Paul A. Woodruff (R-Yucaipa) that deals with earthquake safety standards in university buildings.

Nolan said he is confident that legislation incorporating the governor’s latest educational finance ideas will be approved by the Legislature before its members go home at the end of next week, and will be signed into law by Deukmejian.

But Sens. Hart and Morgan are working on an alternate plan and many observers doubt that agreement can be reached on a compromise in the short time remaining in this legislative session.

Times staff writer Carl Ingram contributed to this story.