Our Schools Now is planning to gather signatures for a ballot initiative in 2018 that, if passed, would raise state income tax .008 percent, from 5 percent to 5.875 percent.
The measure would raise an extra $750 million each year which would go directly to education, giving Utah schools about $1,000 more per student.
According to the Utah Foundation, Utah’s K-12 education funding has fallen from seventh to 37th in the nation over the past 20 years, a nearly $1.2 billion reduction in money available to schools.
Education funding in Utah has declined since 1996, when Utah began spending income tax on higher education. Previously, income tax was only spent on K-12.
In 2017, $800 million in state income tax revenue will be spent on higher education, according to a Utah Foundation report.
Our Schools Now has been pushing legislators to come up with more education funding, with no results.
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