Are school boards and the school tax still justified?

A sharp rise in municipal tax rolls has led school boards in many regions in Quebec to announce exorbitant increases in the school tax for 2006-07, exceeding 50% in some places. The Quebec government has intervened to limit the increase to about 4%. This controversy has nonetheless revived debate on the value and legitimacy of the school tax as a means of complementary financing for school boards – and of school boards themselves as institutions. More than a century-and-a-half after they were created, do school boards still play a necessary role in managing the education system? Can a fairer and more efficient arrangement be devised?

Links of interest

Media Release: Poll results: A majority in Quebec favour greater autonomy in school management – It is time to call school boards into question

Economic Note: Decentralization of school management: Ideas from Abroad

Léger Marketing-MEI Public Poll (February 2007): Quebeckers Opinion on the Organization and Financing of Public School