For Howard County's elected Republicans, this may be the year they have to put up or shut up when it comes to one important aspect of public school funding.
Now that the county's roster of elected officials is dominated by Republicans, they have the opportunity to seek a repeal of the law requiring the county's public school system to provide bus service to parochial school students. Of course, that could mean being disloyal to an important plank in the national GOP platform, which proposes taking funds from public schools to provide vouchers to families of private school students.
But if Republicans are also to be true to their call for the public school system to be more frugal, they need to address the inconsistency in their position. It is, after all, County Executive Charles I. Ecker and County Council Chairman Charles C. Feaga, both Republicans, who have screamed the loudest for Howard County public school officials to hold the line on spending.
Certainly, in looking for areas where cuts can be made without adversely affecting public education, funding to transport students to parochial schools ranks as a prime target.
This superfluous program currently transports about 650 students to five Catholic schools in Howard. A 1943 law requires the school system to provide the transportation when parochial students live on an existing bus route and bus seats are available. Howard spends $206,000 a year to provide the service.
But state officials have cut $437,000 from the county's share of school transportation aid for next year, and school officials are under increased pressure to curtail spending.
With the money that could be saved by eliminating bus service for parochial schools, Howard education officials estimate they could hire six new teachers or purchase 103 new computers.
Beneficiaries of bus service to private schools say they are taxpayers, too, with a right to public transportation. But the mere payment of taxes does not turn all public service into an entitlement. When parents choose to send their children to private or religious institutions, they should expect to foot the entire bill.
It is inherently unfair that those who choose the public schools, many of whom may do so for personal economic reasons, are forced to subsidize the education of private school children. Public funds should be for public education.