PUBLIC schools nationwide got a reprieve this week from federal Medicaid cuts that would have eliminated about $700 million a year in reimbursements for mandated programs.
This would be a good time for Congress to set up some consistent rules concerning mandates. In fairness, the first of these rules should be that when the federal government requires something, it should not pass along all of the costs to state and local governments.
President Bush signed legislation Monday to fund war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Contained in that same bill was language that halts rule changes proposed by the White House that would have halted Medicaid payments to schools and other entities providing services required by federal law.
If the cuts had been left intact, Quincy Public Schools would have lost $124,000 annually in reimbursements. A second round of cuts would have taken place in April, costing the local school district another $143,000 per year.
Similar funding gaps would have occurred in school districts throughout the nation.
In directing federal agencies to cut back on Medicaid and Medicare services, the Bush administration was concerned with balancing the federal budget. While that is a worthy goal, it is counterproductive to cut government spending at one level and simultaneously increase it at another level. Taxpayers pay in either case.
There is a recurring problem with Congress passing laws, requiring expensive programs and then forcing state, county, city or other governmental units to cover the costs. It is difficult for some of these governmental bodies to find the additional money or even the taxing authority to cover the mandates. Things get even more complicated when rules change in the middle of a fiscal year at a time when these smaller entities have months to go before they can adjust budgets.
Congress would do a great service to this nation's taxpayers, to other governmental entities and to itself by avoiding unfunded mandates and other practices that rely on cost-shifting as a substitute for problem-solving.
