Opinion ID: 1910318
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 16

Heading: The School Board's Actions Were Rationally Related to a Legitimate Government Purpose

Text: The Coalition does not contest whether the school board's actions were rationally related to a legitimate government interest. The thrust of its argument is that the Nebraska Constitution provides a fundamental right to equal and adequate educational funding, an argument which we reject. The school district contends that its actions to reduce costs, including adjusting its classes so that small classes could be combined, were rationally related to its goal of providing an education for its students. We agree. At the temporary injunction hearing, Forsberg, the superintendent, was asked during cross-examination why the board had not chosen to save money by transporting the students from Lyons to Decatur. He responded that the board had considered that possibility. But because the secondary school was at Lyons, the Lyons facility had to be heated and operated anyway. He stated that because there were more students at Lyons than at Decatur, two busses, instead of one, would be required to transport students from Lyons to Decatur. He also said that the remaining students at Decatur in grades kindergarten through three would be taught in one K-3 center, allowing the district to reduce staff costs and reduce heating and maintenance costs, for a total savings of about $200,000. Because the school board was confronted with increasing budget deficits, we conclude that its actions were rationally related to its legitimate goal of providing an education to all children in the district. Because the Coalition has failed to show that a heightened level of scrutiny applies to the school district's decisions or that those decisions were not rationally related to a legitimate government purpose, its substantive due process claim must fail.