Governor wants to spend more on failing program

Yes, The governor has said he would like to spend more on the states pre K program.

Bill Dunn lets fly....



The Bredesen administration projected that about 60 percent of children would attend pre-K if the program was open to all, at an increased annual cost of about $150 million. Haslam during the governor's race said his estimate would be closer to $300 million.

Rep. Bill Dunn, R-Knoxville and a longtime opponent of expanding pre-K funding, said he expects the actual costs would be closer to $500 million.

"If you make it where every 4-year-old who wants to go can go, it would be voluntary, but 90 percent would send their kids," he said. "You would say, 'I'll pay for daycare or private pre-K, or I can let the taxpayers pay for it.'"

Dunn said he had planned to speak with the governor this summer about why the state shouldn't spend more money on pre-K. "I might have to move that meeting up," he said.

Dunn cites a state comptroller's study that found children who attended pre-K did worse in subsequent years than those who did not. Pre-K supporters dismiss that analysis as flawed and point to other studies that tout the educational benefits of early childhood education.

"I know the governor likes to deal with reality," Dunn said. "Especially when he sees the disappointing returns on our investment in pre-K."