School Funding Should be Equal

There is a pressing problem among the schools in the Capistrano Unified School District because of the unfair distribution of state funds within Orange County. The Capistrano Unified School District ranks last in per pupil expenditures in Orange County, behind 11 other school districts.

It is outrageous that the difference between Laguna Beach School District and Capistrano Unified School District is about $1,000 per student per year. Because of the disproportionate (distribution) of state funds, the Capistrano School District has had to lay off teachers, increase class sizes and discontinue many extracurricular programs.

If the Capistrano district was allocated as much money as the average school district in Orange County, there would have been no need for the $7.9 million in budget cuts in the 1992-93 budget.

The school district is rightfully suing the state for the much-needed redistribution of the funds, and Gov. Wilson, rather than working with the school district, has placed $1 million aside to fight the lawsuit.

The state should give each school district the same amount of money for each student per year. Every student in Orange County, and the state for that matter, deserves the same education and the same financial backing, and there is no reason for this blatant discrimination of certain school districts to continue.

GREGORY ROA, Laguna Niguel