State May Revoke MCPS Maintenance of Effort Penalty
by Kevin Hogan '10
Published Friday, March 05, 2010
The state senate passed legislation on February 26 to revoke a $23.4 million fine levied on MCPS for its violation of state Maintenance of Effort regulations. The legislation must pass through the House of Delegates and be signed by Governor Martin O’Malley before becoming law.
The fine originated when Montgomery County failed to fund its school system at the minimum Maintenance of Effort level that is determined by the state during the 2010 fiscal year. In the late fall of 2010, Attorney General Douglas Gansler issued an opinion stating that county government’s funding of the school system was illegal, and that the county could face millions of dollars in penalties as a result.
In April, Montgomery County asked that the state school board waive the fine on the grounds that the recession led to difficulties in funding schools at a normal level, but the board denied this request. Under the threat of a multimillion dollar fine, MCPS began to brace for the possibility of budget cuts for the 2011 fiscal year.
Now MCPS officials are hopeful that the legislation passing through the General Assembly will remove this penalty. Senator Nancy King, lead sponsor of the bill, is confident that the bill will be signed because she senses no opposition to it among her colleagues.