In case you missed it last week, EdSec Arne Duncan’s message to states regarding the use of stimulus funding is becoming ever-clearer: If states use stimulus dollars to plug budget holes instead of boosting aid for schools, the federal government may withhold millions of dollars of additional stimulus funding.

This Boston Globe article had harsh words for states like Pennsylvania, Texas and Arizona—that have been accused of cutting education funding due to the pending influx of stimulus dollars—but also for other states who may have implemented similar, more under-the-radar cuts to education:

“Obama did not intend for state lawmakers to simply cut state education spending and replace it with stimulus dollars.

Congress made that tough to enforce; the stimulus law generally does not prohibit states from using some of the money to replace precious state aid for schools. The result is that school districts could wind up with no additional state aid even as local tax revenues plummet.

But Duncan does have leverage; he alone has control over the $5 billion incentive fund. And in some cases, he may be able to withhold some stimulus dollars that have been allocated for a particular state.”

You've been warned.