California schools are going bust.

Is it any surprise? California government faces routine rounds of boom-bust deficits. The political class squeezes the rich for their money, and the high-end earners are expected to pick up the tab for most of the government’s services.

Tired of being fleeced, the rich are fleeing the state, and with that comes the deeper cuts.

Bay Area schools are closing, facing budget shortfalls. LAUSD schools are looking at insolvency, and fast. The wealthier suburban enclave of Manhattan Beach, CA issued notice of 60 layoffs to balance the district’s budget. Redlands Unified School District also approved another round of layoffs earlier this year.

Couldn’t the local governments take the helm and fix the budget problems?

In California, financing for schools does not go from the taxpayer right to the school district. All the money goes up to Sacramento, and then the politicians divvy up the money across all the school districts depending on need, diversity, reading scores, and other considerations. As expected, the schools in the bluer, more left-wing areas that are failing tend to get most of the money.

It’s not about achievement. There’s nothing fair about the process at all. Schools that fare poorly—and have poorer students, too—get more money. 

Hermosa Beach, California, is one of the highest-performing school districts in the state, and they get so little money in comparison to other regions. True, Hermosa Beach is also one of the richest cities in the state, so Ed foundations routinely fundraise to fill up the funding gaps for the school district.

Why should a rich area get punished just because it's rich? How is that fair? Should a rich district, where the students do well academically, be punished by receiving less money........

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