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11-28-2001 State aid an unknown factor in Duluth's school budget planningFor the second year in a row, Duluth School District officials will begin their budget process without knowing how much money the state will provide. During the first six months of 2001, the level of state aid fluctuated by about $8 million as Gov. Jesse Ventura and Minnesota legislators negotiated a final education budget. A repeat of that process appears likely. With the recession sharply reducing the inflow of state tax money, legislators will have to revisit their 2001 spending plan, even though 2002 is scheduled to be their bonding session. Facing a shortfall that could exceed $1 billion, options include agency spending cuts, tax increases and a withdrawal of money from state reserves. "As much as possible, we'll try to avoid education cuts, but certainly there are no guarantees. To come up with $1 billion is a lot of money,'' said Sen. Douglas Johnson, DFL-Tower. "The general feeling is that we should protect K-12 spending,'' said Rep. Thomas Huntley, DFL-Duluth. But that could be difficult because K-12 education represents 35 percent of Minnesota's general fund budget. "It probably means Duluth will have to close more schools and increase class sizes,'' he said. Ventura has indicated he won't increase taxes to eliminate the shortfall, said Sen. Becky Lourey, DFL-Kerrick, co-chair of the Legislature's education committee. Nor will he use state reserves to balance the budget, according to Huntley. "At this point, everything is rumor,'' said Rep. Dale Swapinski, DFL-Duluth. "There's different ways to juggle the numbers, and there will be some pain. There will have to be some school closures -- there's no doubt about that.''
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