Education

The ballot title of a referendum legalizing slot machines in Maryland suggests slots would be authorized only to fund education. In fact, slightly less than half of the money would go to education, the League of Women Voters reports. Such misleading titles are common in referenda that are placed on the ballot by legislatures, since they can draft the titles themselves. In citizen initiatives, someone independent of the authors -- typically an attorney general or secretary of state -- writes the title.

If you're looking for info on Golden State schools, you might check out this new tool, California School Finder, offered up by the state (and pushed hard by the governor's office). Word is it will become a little more robust in the future, but for now, it gives you some measures to compare schools in your area. I found it a little slow to load, but I'm sitting in a coffee shop in Arvin, Calif., surrounded by nothing but fast-food joints, tour buses, long-haul truckers and carrots (the last is big agricultural product in this part of the world, just north of the Tehachapi Mountains).

The tax code is a mess. Even those pointy-headed economists that can bicker about anything (except the gas tax) agree that it is too complicated. They cry in virtual unison that the growth of tax deductions, credits, and deferrals leads to inefficiencies and market distortions (yikes!).

To confirm these fears, we need look no further than the education arena. Do you know how many tax provisions there are designed to support post secondary education and workforce training? It's a long list.

There are tax breaks for contributions to specific accounts and savings plans such as Coverdell education savings accounts, section 529 college savings plans, pre-paid tuition plans, and penalty-free withdrawals from IRAs. Further, there are other tax breaks that cover the treatment of educational expenses. These include the Hope Credit, Lifetime Learning Credit, deduction for tuition and fees, and the deduction for interest on student loans. So, that's a count of at least 8.

Many of these overlap and as such they cause a great deal confusion among consumers. Last week the House Ways and Means Commitee held a hearing on this topic and I sent in some testimony that offered my take on the matter.

Here's my look at how Schwarzenegger's proposed budget cuts, especially on education, are getting in the way of his push for budget reform and a redistricting ballot initiative that appears headed for the November ballot in California.