As long school funding lawsuit ends in Kansas, some fear lawmakers will backslide on education goals

By JOHN HANNA
AP Political Writer

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas’ highest court has closed out a nearly 13-year-old lawsuit that repeatedly forced the Republican-controlled Legislature to boost funding for public schools. A state Supreme Court order on Tuesday said that legislators have fulfilled promises to provide annual increases in aid to the state’s 286 local school districts as outlined in a 2019 law. The state expects to provide $4.9 billion in aid to those districts during the current school year. That’s 39% more than the $3.5 billion for the 2013-14 school district. But Democrats predicted Wednesday that GOP colleagues soon would be trying to backslide on lawmakers’ promises. Key Republicans rejected that idea.