© 2024 Peoria Public Radio
A joint service of Bradley University and Illinois State University
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

School Superintendents, Mayors Push for School Funding Fix

School superintendents from central and southern Illinois are pushing lawmakers to reach an agreement on overhauling the state's school funding formula.

Several spoke in Springfield Wednesday, the day they were supposed to hold a Capitol rally. 

However, they canceled it when House Speaker Michael Madigan scrapped Wednesday's legislative session citing progress in legislative leaders' negotiations.  

Lawmakers from both parties agree the calculation Illinois uses is unfair. But they disagree over how to fix it. The budget legislators approved last month requires a new formula for schools to get state money.  

However, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner rejected the plan majority Democrats approved. 

The Senate overrode Rauner's veto. Madigan says if there's no compromise this week, he'll schedule a House override vote next week.

Mayors from Chicago and the suburbs called Wednesday for an override.  

The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.