TABLE VII. PUBLIC PERMANENT COMMON SCHOOL FUNDS IN 1905-continued Permanent State Total Unsold Common Common School Fund Principal on Cr. Leased and Unleased School Lands Total Permanent Estimated for Value State Common State Com. Common Credit Fund a by or School Funds Sch. Funds Total Intact and Permanent State Loan Fund State Debts Bonds Acreage % Estimated Schools and and Land Note: For source of data in this table consult account given of each state in Part II. a Credit funds are of several classes, see foot-notes h, u, C. In any case they are not productive in a real sense. d Rental of oyster lands and half rental of Western and Atlantic R. R. No provision for establishing these as permanent school funds; see account given in Part II. e Prospective value is much larger; fund is being increased from other sources than school land. f Approximate. g Unable to ascertain; paid out of taxes. h Practically a permanent state debt. k Deposited in U. S. Treasury to draw three per cent interest after June 16, 1906; see Indian Territory and Oklahoma, Part II. m Data taken from Rept. U. S. Commissioner Ed., includes local permanent funds. o A sum fixed by law; the actual income is less; consult account in Part II. 9 Includes amounts given as "Credit Fund." n Now used tor supporting Teachers' Institutes only. Land rents only; unable to ascertain income from invested principal. Secured by state bonds; interest is paid from ordinary state revenues; this state has no direct state tax. s Interest on this principal is derived from a sinking fund. Interest on this sum is derived from state taxes. " State uses moneys as they are paid into the treasury; credits them to the fund; pays interest on the account thus established. w Data for Minnesota does not include half of Swamp Land Fund which was established as a common school fund in 1907. A Possesses unsold school lands; area and value impossible to ascertain. B These are grammar school lands owned by certain towns; therefore are not included in my estimate of the permanent state fund. In 1905 they yielded about $3,000 rent. C Established or recognized as a permanent state debt by the constitution or by law. in districts that have not disposed of the sixteenth section." 47 In 1905 Colorado derived over ninety-five per cent of moneys for supporting common schools from sources other than her permanent fund; 44 nevertheless, in the report for the year 1901 the Superintendent of Public Instruction wrote: "In many of the poorer districts the income of permanent school funds is what enables the schools to be maintained for the four months required by law, and in other districts it is an important feature." 48 It is scarcely necessary to comment upon the importance of the permanent school funds in such states as Wyoming, Texas, and Nevada. In Texas about one-fourth of the total revenue for common schools is derived from the income of the permanent funds, and many districts depend for all or the largest part of their support upon the revenue of the County School Fund and the Permanent School Fund. J. W. Stephens, State Controller, states that many districts do not levy local taxes, and such depend entirely upon the available school and county available funds for support.37 The importance of state controlled funds is well illustrated in the history of the school systems of Maine, Vermont, and Massachusetts. The matter will be discussed more fully Historical Importance of Permanent later. It is sufficient here to say that each of these states attempted to do without such a fund. Maine and Massachusetts realized their mistake in the early part of the nineteenth century, and in 1904 Vermont established hers.* School Funds The purpose of this work is to show the origin of the permanent common school funds, their management, loss, and present condition. For a better appreciation of the relation of these funds to the development of school support, it will be well to devote a chapter to the consideration of the sources of school support which existed prior to the establishment of the permanent state school funds. * See accounts, Part II. 47 Statement received Sept. 1, 1906, from G. T. Blair, Ill. State Supt. of Public Instruction. 48 Report Colo. State Supt. of Public Instruction, 1901-02, p. 623. CHAPTER II EARLY SOURCES OF SCHOOL SUPPORT AND EVOLUTION OF PUBLIC PERMANENT SCHOOL FUNDS Nine Sources of It is possible to open the discussion of the topic of this chapter in either of two ways: by discussing the sources of school support existing prior to the establishment in any state of a general permanent common school fund; or Permanent Funds by discussing the sources of school support employed by certain states and territories which themselves as yet possessed no permanent school fund. Both points of view will be presented to a certain extent in this chapter. At least nine sources. of school support existed in the United States prior to the estab lishment of general permanent common school funds: (1) appropriations, (2) rate bills, (3) local taxes on personal and real property, (4) taxes on banks, (5) licenses and taxes on occupations and on commodities, (6) lotteries, (7) land rents, (8) gifts and bequests, (9) permanent funds. Early Means of Connecticut established her School Fund in 1795,49 New York her Common School Fund in 1805,50 and Massachusetts her School Fund in 1834.51 In New York six sources contribSchool Support in Connecticut, New uted to the support of common schools prior to York, Massachusetts the establishment of her permanent common school fund: appropriations, rate bills, town taxes, lotteries, gifts, and local funds.* Connecticut employed five of these sources: appropriations, rate bills, local taxes, gifts, and local funds; Massachusetts, five: local taxes, rate bills, gifts, land rents, and funds. It is necessary to state at the outset that most of the sources of *The Literature Fund, established in 1786, the first public permanent school fund in New York, was devoted to the support of Academical Departments for training teachers and therefore is not included in this list. 49 Hudson and Goodwin, Digest of Acts and Laws of Conn., 1805, pp. 31-33. 50 Laws of New York, 1805, Chap. 66. 51 Mass. Laws, 1834, Chap. CLXIX. school support which existed prior to general permanent common school funds continued to contribute to the maintenance of schools long after the establishment of these funds. The general permanent common school fund, then, did not supplant these other sources, but served to increase the revenue derived from the more important of them by the incentive and unity which it gave to the free school movement. The following paragraphs will present only a few of the many examples which might be given of the employment of the more important sources of support for schools named above. Local appropriations by towns date from earliest colonial days. For example, in Connecticut we find that Hartford, as early as 1642, appropriated thirty pounds for the support of a school conforming to a custom already estab Town, State, and Federal Appropriations lished.52 Early in the next period of American history, individual states followed the example set by colonial towns. The legislature of New York in 1795 enacted that twenty thousand pounds be appropriated annually for "encouraging and maintaining schools in this state, in which there shall be instruction in English Language, English Grammar, Arithmetic, and Mathematics." 53 These appropriations expired in 1800.54 Louisiana, by section 1 of an Act approved March 6, 1819, provided for an annual appropriation of six thousand dollars for supporting a school or schools, in each parish of the state, except New Orleans.55 Section Section 3, of an Act approved February 6, 1821, increased this amount to eight thousand dollars.56 The United States Government has made federal appropriations from time to time to meet certain special conditions: "Congress has never set aside any school land in Alaska, but has made annual appropriations for the support of public schools." The appropriation for the year 1886 was fifteen thousand dollars. In 1901 the 52 Hinsdale, B. A., Documents Illustrative of American Educational History; Report U. S. Commissioner of Education, 1892–93, Vol. II, p. 1240. 53 Laws of New York, 1795, Chap. 75. 54 Randall, S. S., History of the Common School System of the State of New York, ed. 1871, p. 96. 55 Lislet's Digest, 1828, p. 348. 66 Ibid., p. 351. 57 annual appropriation was increased to thirty thousand dollars,5 and in 1905 to fifty thousand dollars.58 Congress makes annual appropriations of one-half the cost_of_maintenance of public schools in the District of Columbia.59 Rate Bills Rate bills were a form of tuition levied as a tax on parents and guardians to pay that portion of the teacher's salary not covered by public moneys. Like appropriations, they existed from earliest colonial days. As stated in Chapter I, they were employed as long as the principle that the parent or guardian, and not the state or community, is responsible for the education of the child, continued to control educational policy. The term "bills" was applied to them because each parent or guardian was charged according to the number of days his child had attended school. They could be collected, like other debts and taxes, by the sale of the debtor's goods and chattels.60 The earliest record of them in Connecticut occurs in 1643. At a general town meeting of Hartford, held in April, it was ordered: "That Mr. Andrew should teach the children in the school one year next ensuing from the 25th of March, 1643, and that he shall have for his pains sixteen pounds; and therefore the townsmen shall go and inquire who will engage themselves to send their children; and all that do so shall pay for one -quarter at the least, and for more if they do send them, after the proportior. of twenty shillings the year, and if they go any weeks more than an even quarter, they shall pay six pence a week; and if any would send their children who are not able to pay for their teaching they shall give notice of it to the townsmen, and they shall pay it at the town's charge; and Mr. Andrew shall keep the account between the children's schooling and himself, and send notice of the times of payment and demand it; and if his wages do not come in, the townsmen must collect and pay it; or if the engagements come not to sixteen pounds then they shall pay what is wanting at the town's charge." 61 57 Report U. S. Commissioner of Education, 1902, Vol. II, p. 1237, gives table of appropriations 1866-1901. 68 Statement of U. S. Commissioner of Education for year ending June 30, 1905, pp. 26, 27, 33. 59 Statement by A. T. Stewart, Director of Intermediate Instruction, Washington, D. C., Sept. 21, 1906. 60 Report N. Y. State Supt. Public Instruction, 1848, pp. 41 ff. 61 Hinsdale, B. A., Documents Illustrative of American Educational History, Report U. S. Commissioner of Education, 1892-93, p. 1240. |