Steven Potter:
Wisconsin's educational system has always been politically contentious. Why is that?

State Sen. Chris Larson:
People have stronger opinions about what should and could be happening in education — that drives a lot of it. It is also a big source of where our funds go. It's one of the largest line items in our state budget at the local level because it relies on property taxes. It's also one of the biggest line items on property taxes. We get a good chunk of our change from the federal government and Title I, and so they're very invested in it. And so small tweaks can have huge reverberations on those budgets. At the same time, of course, if you have a bad education, that could send somebody on a bad course in life. So, I think that, for the most part, most of the people who come to the table with strong opinions on public education are coming from the place where they want what's best for all kids. And I think that we are, as a society, always trying to do what's best for the most vulnerable. I think it's universally agreed on kids, they're not able to fend for themselves, so we want to make sure that we're setting them on the best course moving forward.

State Rep. Jessie Rodriguez:
I think there are competing priorities. That's always been the case, at least since I've been in the Legislature. There's always a need for things that the school districts need. I think, for a long time, especially concerning to a lot of members, before I was even part of the Legislature, was how to fund public education. So, a lot of the conversations that we have in this building is how to fund our public education and still have a budget that is balanced, because that is a requirement according to our state constitution. So, I think that's why it's more political. I think more people would love to see us do a lot of programs, but unfortunately, if we don't have the funding for it, it's going to be difficult to be able to accomplish those things.