Special Education
* As the author of a bill to restructure the Los Angeles Unified School District, I am disappointed by your article dealing with the tough questions of how to pay for “categorical programs” like special education.
In an in-depth article (“Allocation of School Funds Spurs Competing Demands,” June 2), The Times focused on $212 million, or about 6% of the district’s $3.9-billion budget, which is being spent on special education and integration services.
My bill in the state Legislature, AB 1635, would fundamentally change the way in which the LAUSD spends money. The district would only get 5% to pay for administration, with the remaining 95% going to the local school sites.
AB 1635 makes sure that money for special education and other “categorical” programs follows the pupils in a flexible way that gives our schools autonomy. The administration could hold back no more than 10% of that money, for buildings and other districtwide costs. This is a tremendous improvement over how those funds are budgeted now.
The taxpayers are tired of paying for a huge bureaucracy and it’s no wonder that the debate over Los Angeles Unified is stormy. Had The Times given my bill a good look, you could have told people that a broad new solution is in the works.
BETTY KARNETTE
Assembly, D-Long Beach
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