“Shall the Minnesota Constitution be amended to increase the funding going to all school districts from the permanent school fund, which is a fund that supports school districts without raising individual income or property taxes, effective July 1, 2027?”

SCHOOL FUNDING WITH NO TAX INCREASES.

On your ballot this year, you will come across the constitutional amendment listed above. As stated in the text, this amendment will increase the available funds for public schools in the state of Minnesota, at no tax increase to its residents.

Now, increasing funding for anything without raising taxes automatically raises questions in the minds of all of us voters. So, you may ask, how exactly does this fund work?

The state of Minnesota has land set aside in a fund to provide for public schools. This fund has been in place since 1858, and the resources of the owned land are invested into a trust. Over the years, this trust has increased in value, and schools receive payouts of 2.25% of its value every year. This is an amount that has been set in place since the fund’s original establishment.

That is what this amendment is looking to change. The percentage of funds paid out to the public school funding each year has remained the same for over a century. The amendment, which seeks to modify the annual distribution to 4.5%, is simply pulling that payout in line with inflation. With this amendment in place, schools will receive an additional $101 per student in each district every single year.

With no tax increase whatsoever.

Vote YES on this amendment at the ballot box this year. Ignoring this counts as a NO vote. This amendment is being pushed on a bipartisan level, and is, simply put, common sense. The public school fund does not apply to private school vouchers or any other function in the state. Together, we can vote to improve the education for all children in this state.