Michigan voters have their say on paying for education.

After rejecting 12 school finance alternatives over more than two decades, Michigan voters on March 15 overwhelmingly approved raising the sales tax from 4 cents to 6 cents as the centerpiece of a plan to switch from property taxes for the bulk of school funding.

Had the constitutional amendment failed, as had five previous attempts to raise the sales tax, the income tax would have increased from 4.6 percent to 6 percent under a bipartisan statutory backup package that was part of the 1993 Christmas Eve deal to put Governor John Engler's plan on the ballot. In short, voters, after getting property relief last year, had to choose between a hike in the sales tax or the income tax for replacement revenue.

The thrust of Engler's campaign was "Stop the Income Tax," and exit polling indicated that was the prime factor in the vote. Proposal A reduced the income tax rate to 4.4 percent.

Engler, who led the fight for Proposal A, said its passage with nearly 70 percent of the vote "marks the end of a generation of debate on property taxes and school finance reform. Today, the jobs engine that is Michigan's economy begins a new era of growth and opportunity for our hard working citizens.

"Proposal A's victory sends a message across the nation that Michigan is a leader in cutting taxes, reforming schools and creating jobs. Michigan is back, and nothing is going to stop us now."

Two Democratic legislators who are running for governor played key roles in the school finance debate. Senator Debbie Stabenow was author of the 1993 amendment - quickly embraced by Engler as a chance to deliver on his 1990 campaign pledge - that scuttled the property tax as a source of funding school operations. This eliminated more than $7 billion in revenue.

Although Stabenow opposed Proposal A, as did the Michigan Education...