NC School Boards Could Lose Ability To Sue Counties Over Construction Funds

A provision in the Senate's proposed budget would prevent local school boards from suing counties to get more money for capital needs.

In North Carolina, county governments are required to provide funding for these projects.

Currently, state law says local disputes over school construction money have to be resolved through a mediator first. If that fails, school systems can sue the county in Superior Court.

But proposed legislation would change that. School boards could no longer file a lawsuit over the issue. Supporters say it will cut down on lengthy lawsuits that waste taxpayer's money and will encourage more communication between school boards and commissioners.

“Commissioners want to fund our schools to the best that they can,” says Kevin Leonard with the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners.  “It's a checks and balance because they have to look at the entire environment. County commissions are also responsible for things like our jails, public health and public safety... If it goes to the courts and they side with the school boards, it could result in a tax increase for residents of the county, and so the position of the county commissioners across the entire state is that doesn't create an equal level of negotiation.”

Ed Dunlap with the North Carolina School Boards Association says removing the ability to take an issue to the court strips power away from local school systems.

“We don't encourage boards of education to go and just sue their commissioners because that can poison the well. Rather, we encourage them to meet and work cooperatively and share their needs with bankers, and that's what in North Carolina the commissioners are,” says Dunlap. “This should be a local issue between the county commissioners and the school boards, not the state. That [the ability to sue] gives them some leverage if you will, to encourage the county commissioners to look hard at the needs that we have, so we don't have to go to court.”

Education experts say lawsuits against local governments over school funding issues are unusual in the state. According to a recent legislative staff report, from 1997 to 2005, 40 cases went into mediation. Of those, four lawsuits were filed.

In 2013, Union County Public Schools sued the county for millions of dollars to help fund its budget. A jury awarded $91 million dollars in the case, but it was appealed. In 2015, the N.C. Court of Appeals ordered a new trial. That same year, the school system announced it was dropping the matter. 

Last year, North Carolina lawmakers approved similar legislation. It says local school boards can't sue counties over operation funding.

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