To the editor:

Under current economic conditions, one might consider putting off expenses such as routine auto maintenance. An oil change might cost $20 and you can’t see the benefit of the investment at the time. But if you can’t (or won’t) pay for an oil change now, how will you pay for a new engine later?

Our state leaders have cut school funding back to 2006 levels. Even in 2006, multiple cost studies showed schools were underfunded by almost $1 billion. Four years later, we have the same funding. Of particular concern are the areas where funds have been lost: at-risk, special education and early intervention programs. These are areas where research shows sufficient funding makes the most difference. Shortchange these kids, and many will drop out.

About 70 percent of prisoners lack a high school diploma. On average, housing one prisoner costs three times as much as educating one student.

Plus, educated working adults actively contribute to the economy. Thus, the immediate and small cost-savings realized by our anti-tax leaders now will cost us tremendously later. Our “new engine” won’t have 32 valves or overhead cams. It will have bars on the windows and armed guards at the door.

A decade or two from now we will see a drop in high school graduation, and a commensurate rise in crime and incarceration, as direct results of our current government’s failure to provide sufficient resources for public education. Watch for my “I told you so” letter sometime between 2020 and 2025.