Schools need $1 billion to pay bills, TEA official says

AUSTIN — Texas schools will run out of money to pay bills this summer unless legislators come up with another $1 billion, a high ranking Texas education official testified Monday in an on-going school funding lawsuit.

Shirley Beaulieu, chief financial officer at the Texas Education Agency, testified that pubic education funding is running short, forcing the agency to ask lawmakers for a $1 billion supplemental appropriation in the coming weeks.

"The system as a whole is in bigger trouble than even we thought," Rick Gray, a lawyer for Equity Center-member school districts, said during a break.

The $1 billion supplemental appropriation request is necessary to help school districts make their July expense payments, Beaulieu testified. Legislators already had deferred August school payments a few days into the new fiscal year to help shore up their 2012-13 budget they passed two years ago.

More at http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/article/Schools-need-1-billion-to-pay-bills-TEA-4173131.php

[font color=green]Yes, it says "pubic education" in the second paragraph. I just cut and paste the excerpts--warts and all! [/font]