Torts, Schmorts

Excellent follow-up story in the Whig Tuesday about the tort fund mess. What this story really needs, though, is a "Fund Accounting for Dummies" story at some point as it develops. Public body accounting is probably the most arcane, difficult subject that regularly makes it into local news. How many "funds" do school districts have? What are the laws regarding what can be done with the money in each one? Why can't districts just shift money from one fund to another when their needs change, like individuals do? (I know, it's the law, but why is it the law? What good is served by strapping school districts with all these requirements?) This is one area where there are definitely no dumb questions, and where the level of the audience's grasp of the situation cannot be underestimated.

Golden opportunity for a nice bunch of explanatory graphics.....seeing all those percentages and dollar figures in paragraph form just made my eyes glaze over. I had to run out, borrow some money from the children's education fund, and put it in the beer fund as an emergency measure.