The time has come for Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Riley to release details of his educational funding plan for Alabama.

Incumbent Gov. Don Siegelman, the Democratic nominee for the governor’s seat, is taking an aggressive campaign stance, challenging Riley to release details about his proposed education funding plan.

But so far, Riley has said only that he will release details "in the coming weeks" and that he will "rule nothing out" in his quest to fund the state’s educational system.

We need more than that. For better or worse, Siegelman has spelled out his plan ­ again and again during the past four years ­ and he continues to tout the benefits of a state lottery, despite its defeat nearly four years ago.

As taxpayers and voters, we want to know what Riley would bring to the table. We

all agree that educational funding is a key issue in this campaign; it’s a real need, and as a state we have an opportunity to create a funding vehicle that will provide adequate and reliable money to educate our children. But we need to do so fairly, effectively and without robbing one fund to benefit another.

In order to keep this an issue-oriented campaign, Riley must put his educational funding plan on the table and let the voters of Alabama compare it to Siegelman’s.  

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