ATLANTA -- The state asked a judge today to throw out a lawsuit accusing Georgia officials of being stingy about school spending, saying that the districts behind the lawsuit can't prove that more spending would increase student achievement.
Roughly a third of Georgia's school systems have joined the lawsuit to require state taxpayers spend enough to provide the "adequate education" that the state constitution specifies.
State officials have been fighting the suit for three years, contending taxpayers already spend plenty to meet the goal. Deputy Attorney General Stefan Ritter said the General Assembly, Gov. Sonny Perdue and the State Department of Education have worked diligently to introduce programs aimed at improving the state's lackluster academic record, even as test scores and graduation rates rise.
"The state is not resting on its laurels," Ritter said.
But the attorney for the suing school systems, Ben Rogers, said the districts and their attorneys would provide plenty of testimony and documents to back up their claims.
"We believe that in the trial in October, we will be able to present you with a mountain of evidence, a Mt. Everest of evidence," he said.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Long said she would rule on the state's motion soon.
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