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Oklahoma Senate
Senator Gumm Says Lawsuit Another Reason To End Forced Consolidation
Senator Jay Paul Gumm
The author of a proposal to end forced school consolidation said Thursday that rural Oklahoma wants consolidation decisions in its hands not with judges, bureaucrats or politicians.
Senator Jay Paul Gumm made the comment in the wake of speculation that a lawsuit by the Oklahoma Education Association (OEA) against Oklahomas education funding system could lead to forced consolidation of school districts.
Gumm introduced Senate Joint Resolution 35. The measure, if passed by the Legislature, would give Oklahoma voters a chance to amend the constitution to end the concept of forced school consolidation.
Placing that policy in the Oklahoma Constitution would ensure that no one could force school districts to consolidate without the approval of voters in the affected school districts regardless of the outcome of the OEA lawsuit, Gumm said.
