Going Above and Beyond

The St. Louis Beacon has a recent report about the Missouri Supreme Court’s decision that the state’s education funding formula is constitutional. This is from a response to that ruling by the House Democratic Caucus:

The Missouri Supreme Court today ruled that the state’s method of funding local public schools meets the minimum constitutional requirements. The court, however, did not rule that the state is doing all it can to improve the quality of public education.

When would the court ever have occasion to make such a ruling? It’s not the judges’ job to give out E’s for effort. Nor would it be possible to determine that the state is “doing all it can” on any policy issue, because the state could always do a little extra or spend a bit more money.

The caucus’ statement is correct that we shouldn’t be complacent about public schools. We can stop wondering whether the funding formula is in accordance with the Constitution, and instead focus on new ideas for reform.