In an effort to resolve a dispute concerning state funding obligations for Kansas public schools, Mediation was ordered by the Kansas Supreme Court.  Now, several weeks into the process, experts agree that mediation might not work. 

After a lawsuit filed by parents and guardians across several school districts in 2010, the courts ordered a $440 million annual increase in school funding.  However, the State of Kansas, as the only defendant in the case, believes that its funding is adequate and is therefore seeking an appeal for the January ruling. 

Kansas state governor, Gov. Sam Brownback, along with Attorney General Derek Schmidt, requested that mediation be used to discuss the appeal and work out a resolution outside of the courts.  While the court agreed to allow mediation, they informed the disputants that there would be another hearing on October 8^th in case mediation failed. 

In the meantime, several state legislatures have been focused on writing school finance provisions.  John Robb, a Newton attorney representing some of the parents in the case, claims that these provisions will not alter the intricacies of the dispute. “There is some stuff the legislature is attempting to do that I don’t think will affect the case at all,” he said.  He labels these provisions as nothing more than “smoke and mirrors” that are “not going to fool the court.  It’s just craziness to think that accounting maneuvers would fool the court and turn an apple into an orange.”

The mediation sessions are scheduled to run up until the October hearing date, when attorneys will head back to court to see if anything good has come out of the sessions.  However, many are doubtful of the efficacy of mediation, since the State Legislature is limited in its Constitutional power to appropriate money.  In such, the State House and Senate would have to authorize specific amounts before their sessions adjourn in May.