Democratic Comptroller candidate Peter Franchot on Wednesday proposed pumping $500 million into school construction to alleviate the crisis caused by state?s aging and overcrowded public school.
Franchot said he wants to tap into the state?s $800 million debt capacity to fund his proposal, which is $160 million more than Gov. Robert Ehrlich allotted for new schools and renovations this year ? an all-time record. Debt capacity refers to the amount the state can safely borrow.
Speaking to a few reporters and supporters in front of Cockeysville Middle School in Baltimore County, Franchot attacked his Democratic opponents, whom he lumped under Ehrlich?s “philosophical wing.”
“In this race for comptroller, there is only one Democrat ? Peter Franchot ? and two Republicans, Janet Owens and William Donald Schaefer,” Franchot said.
Ehrlich?s funding well exceeds recommendations of the 2002 Kopp Commission, which conducted a landmark survey of all state schools and estimated construction needs to fix its problems at $3.85 billion, said spokesman Henry Fawell.
Lead by state treasurer Nancy Kopp, the report suggested a minimum of $250 million in state school construction funds each year.
Fawell said the governor ultimately determines school funding, not the comptroller.
“The governor firmly believes children deserve to learn in safe and modernized schools,” Fawell said. “It?s well known that the most dangerous place to be is between Peter Franchot and a bank of news cameras.”
Schaefer and Owens spokespeople echoed Fawell?s remarks on the comptroller?s limited role in school construction allocation.
“[Franchot] continues to run for the wrong office,” said Owens spokesman Bob DiPietro.
