“I agree with the court’s view that we made progress in the current budget toward meeting our basic education obligations. I also share the court’s concern about the pace we are moving and about all of the work that remains undone.
“As I discussed when releasing my 2014 supplemental budget, the state will need an estimated $5 billion over the next two biennia to fully implement the Legislature’s McCleary response, keep up with enrollment increases and provide teacher COLAs.
“I fully expect we’ll continue our vigorous discussion about closing tax loopholes and other sustainable strategies to fund our children’s education. As I said last month, we cannot — and will not — meet all these needs and obligations by cutting services to vulnerable children and adults, higher education and communities.
“In the end, this isn’t just about complying with court orders. It’s about our children. We owe it to them to fully fund the education reforms we promised.”