Arberry says governor shorting education budgets

Assembly Ways and Means Chairman Morse Arberry said Thursday the governor's proposed education budgets add only $13 million in new money over the biennium.

"It appears to me that K-12 education is receiving a pittance of new enhancements when compared to other budget areas," he said in a letter to Gov. Jim Gibbons.

Arberry, D-Las Vegas, said that according to a legislative fiscal staff analysis, the university system gets an additional $52 million in enhancements over the biennium and human services $99 million in new money. Public education gets just $5.5 million the first year and $7.5 million the second.

"When it comes to providing the funding needed to make real, meaningful improvements in our public schools, the governor seriously shortchanged K-12 education," he said.

Arberry said that is unacceptable and that, while claiming to put education first, "(Gibbons) is, in fact, making K-12 education one of his lowest priorities."

He called on Gibbons to revamp his budget to make a real investment in "improving our schools."