Teachers and Democrats protest cuts

SACRAMENTO, July 7 (UPI) -- California Democratic leaders and the state's teachers say they oppose a proposal to suspend the state's school budgeting formula to help balance the budget.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to suspend Proposition 98 funding guarantees for elementary and secondary education, the largest line item in the state budget.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell said Tuesday this would cause "severe and long-lasting harm to both our students and our schools," the Los Angeles Times reported.

"In trying to solve the state's fiscal deficit, we're creating learning deficits in our kids," said Rick Pratt, assistant executive director of California's School Boards Association. School funding has already been cut as the state's deficit mounts, he said.

Both men held a news conference to denounce Sacramento's plans to eliminate the state's $26.3 billion deficit.