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Richard Piatt ReportingUtah has a projected billion dollar budget surplus that has the Republicans talking tax relief and the Democrats talking education.
With all that money in the surplus, this could be the year to really tackle long-term funding challenges for Utah public education. Democrats today unveiled multiple proposals to do just that.
The news conference was a way for the minority party to get a jump on the general legislative session, which starts in a couple weeks. They say they agree with the Governor's tax cut proposals and goals outlined in his budget, but they say education "trumps all" when it comes to securing the future of the state.
Rep. Brad King, House Minority Whip: "The past, previous three years have been down times, and we've got an opportunity to make up from that time. "
Most of the proposals will require money, including goals to reduce class size, preparing younger students through an all-day kindergarten option, math and reading programs, spending millions to update school libraries, and to better preparation of teachers.
How much do Democrats plan to spend on all of this? They won't unveil their budget after the session begins, but they do say they like the Governor's proposal for education, which calls for a 14 percent increase.
