Two state legislators introduced legislation Monday in order to reform the ailing Milwaukee Public School District.

Rep. Tamara Grigsby, D-Milwaukee, and Sen. Spencer Coggs, D-Milwaukee, co-authored the Reforming and Advancing Children’s Education for Success Act to form a collaborative partnership between the MPS School Board, the Milwaukee Common Council and the mayor of Milwaukee, according to a joint statement released Monday by the two legislators.

The statement said the mayor and the MPS School Board president will serve as co-chairs of the partnership, which will attempt to garner more civic and parental participation in the school through a grassroots education network.

The RACE for Success Act gives the mayor input and veto power on the MPS School Board’s decision for school superintendent, but the board can override this veto, the statement said. Also, the board will keep its control over the school budget but will give the mayor the ability to control the property tax levy once it passes 8 percent.

“RACE for Success represents a firm commitment to our children and to recognizing the democratic rights of our fellow citizens, while instating a sense of shared accountability in public education at the same time,” Grigsby said in the statement.

The proposal also includes funding opportunities for school districts looking to update and build facilities that are more eco-friendly, giving priority to schools with students living in poverty.

Mike Mikalsen, spokesperson for Rep. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, said Nass does not think the proposal makes real progress in MPS reform.

“One of the things he’s so frustrated with is there is nowhere else in the state where you find adults who have shown such a lack of concern with the achievement gap — particularly with minorities — in MPS,” Mikalsen said.

He added the money is spent on making more environmentally sound buildings when MPS already has too many facilities.

This proposal comes at a time when a different MPS reform plan was introduced by fellow Milwaukee Democratic Senators Lena Taylor, Jeff Plale and Tim Carpenter in early November.

Taylor spokesperson Eric Peterson said the largest difference between the two proposals is the proposal released today does not transform governance in MPS, which is the biggest factor in the reform.

“The plan (released by Grigsby and Coggs) has the board keeping the same powers, the mayor gets the chance to veto, but the board can override him. … In no way does this bring about the type of transformative change that [President Barack Obama] and [Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett] have asked for,” Peterson said.

Peterson said changing governance is not technically a requirement for the federal Race to the Top funding Wisconsin is vying for, but each state gets more credit for the amount of changes they put into its lowest performing school district.