Saturday, December 22, 2012

By the Editorial Board
The Oregonian

Gov. John Kitzhaber's education advisers should be able to relate to small-college coaches in Oregon. Both groups struggle to find financial resources, so they have to be creative and execute at a high level to compete.

In essence, that's what Kitzhaber and his staff attempted in the governor's proposed 2013-15 budget, which ends the practice of allocating a portion of lottery funds to college sports. The annual allocation has been made since the state ended its Sports Action Lottery in 2007 so it could meet NCAA requirements for hosting a men's basketball regional tournament.

But as often is the case with creative game plans, the proposal could have unintended consequences -- most significantly a decrease in scholarships available to high school athletes.

Click here to read the entire editorial.