Don Sundquist should be remembered as an education and families governor for Tennessee

Gov. Don Sundquist, who died on August 27, assumed office in January 1995 with a Tennessee budget trending toward imbalance, a partially funded K-12 education funding formula, a fast-growing TennCare health-care program, and state and federal court orders limiting what he could do.

Though often remembered for four years of failed tax reform and budget battles of his second term, Governor Sundquist should be remembered for what he did to fund state aid to K-12 education equitably, to advocate higher education funding improvement, to settle a 38-year higher-education desegregation lawsuit, and to implement health and social services reforms.

Sundquist wanted to eliminate the grocery sales tax and reduce the sales tax on other items, initially proposing business tax reforms and eventually a flat-rate income tax.  Rejecting reform, the Legislature in 2002, raised the sales tax by another 1 cent per dollar and deleted the K-12 and higher education program improvements that the governor had advocated.

By 1998, Sundquist had completed full funding of the K-12 basic education program (BEP).   Though the state Legislature in 1992 had increased the sales tax by a half-cent per dollar, this was less than a third of the billion dollars necessary to fully fund the BEP increase in state aid.  Once presented the equitable BEP solution, the state Supreme Court in 1993 had ordered that the state must fully fund the BEP over six years, regardless of the state tax revenue situation.

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Sundquist ended a four-decade-old desegregation lawsuit

In higher education, Sundquist decided that 38 years was long enough to leave a desegregation lawsuit unsettled.  In 2001, he entered into a settlement agreement in the 1968 Rita Geier lawsuit, and he, his successor, and the Legislature funded the program enhancements that put an end to the lawsuit in 2006.

The program provided funds for equity and diversity initiatives throughout Tennessee’s two university systems and provided education program additions and capital improvements at historically-black Tennessee State University in Nashville.

The TennCare program that Sundquist inherited had been created in the last year of the preceding administration.  The reform program was under-staffed and under-funded from day one.  Growth in health-care costs quickly outpaced growth in state tax revenues.  This problem had not been solved by the time Sundquist left office in 2003.

Families First, a reform of the joint state-federal welfare program, aid to families with dependent children (AFDC), was the signature accomplishment of the first Sundquist term.  Enacted in 1996, the program set time limits on welfare; required work, with education and job training and placement options; and transportation and child care assistance.

In developing Families First, Sundquist insisted on more child care assistance than senior policy staff had thought could be proposed.

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The governor took the criticism and pressed ahead

Gov. Sundquist signed his last appropriations bill into law on July 4, 2002.  This was a far cry from his reform budget, tax reform supporting K-12 and higher education initiatives having failed for a fourth year.

As I left Sundquist at the Capitol on that rainy Independence Day, I crossed a vacant War Memorial Plaza, where tax protestors and education advocates had demonstrated for four years.  From a soggy pile of signs, I picked up two dry signs and took them back to the Budget Office.  One sign said, “It’s the socialism, stupid — cut spending,” the other, “Spend more on education.”  (The more-colorful socialism sign now resides in the State Museum.)

That’s how it was with Governor Sundquist.  He was tough, determined and had a good heart.  He did not waver amid criticism.  He should be remembered for his unyielding efforts to improve education, higher education, and the health and welfare of Tennessee families.

Bill Bradley, of Nashville, a retired career state employee, is a former director of the Division of Budget, Tennessee Dept. of Finance and Administration.  He worked on the state budgets of Gov. Don Sundquist and four other Tennessee governors.                                                   

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Don Sundquist achieved much on education and for Tennessee families