Today's Almanac editorial is, "Belt-tightening time is today." Mt. Lebanon School District School District took the Municipality to court. But the editorial, Belt-tightening time is today points out that local officials are ignoring the fact that the national economy is circling the drain. In our efforts to demand fiscal responsibility from our nonresponsive board, we were reminded by school officials that they pay taxes just like the rest of us. The editorial addressed that comeback with, "...not everyone has a bulging wallet."
How many of us are hoping for the bids to come back too high again? I know I am. Belt-tightening time was long ago for me. I am not the only one in this community with a skinny wallet.
Belt-tightening time is today, saved in Google Docs
I was sent a link to an article from TownHall.com on basically the same subject from a fellow resident.
ReplyDeleteHere's the link: http://townhall.com/columnists/kyleolson/2011/09/29/education_blob%e2%80%99s_%e2%80%98useful_idiots%e2%80%99_tie_uncle_same_to_tree_in_new_propaganda_video/page/full/
But anyway they pulled out this paragraph from the entry that is very interesting!
"Many parents have come to believe that the red ink in public school budgets has been caused by politicians who have scaled back the increases in public education spending. Parents have been duped into thinking that it’s the “evil” and miserly politicians who are to blame for government schools going broke. Parents don’t want to confront the fact that it’s the pensions, benefits, and other perks for the adult school employees that have brought the system to the financial brink. Worse, parents have fallen prey to the notion that spending must be increased or little Johnny’s art teacher will have taught his last finger painting lesson."
Take a look at the position of our board president on her blog regarding Gov. Corbett and the debt crisis in Harrisburg and the money available to school districts. She blames everyone and everything except the board that squandered money on senseless building plans, lawsuits, superintendent buyouts, etc. etc, but continues to approve spending on everything. Almost everything, except at the same time she and fellow board members are looking to parents and students to fork over more money in user and participation fees and donations.
Dick Saunders
Just wait until the reassessment to find out how many folks have a skinny wallet. If you go on the County Assessment Website and compare the purchase price of some Board Members' homes with the assessed value you will find some of them will be paying a very large tax increase. Just wait until they find out they are financing someone else's tax cut.
ReplyDeleteJohn Ewing
I have been in attendance at school board meetings when a teacher, or someone on the District's staff, has said, “I pay (property) taxes, too!” This protestation seems logical, but needs some qualification.
ReplyDeleteIn order for any entity to pay its employees it must have funds flowing into it from outside itself. A person living in Mt. Lebanon and paying property taxes of, say, $5,000 to the Mt. Lebanon School District has to get that money from someplace. If he (or she) works for company “A” then $5,000 flows into the District's bank account because company “A” paid that person a salary out of its profits. But what if that person happens to be a teacher living in Mt. Lebanon? Then the $5,000 that person “pays” in property taxes is actually a rebate to the District, because that person was paid a salary out of those same tax funds. The District's “bottom line” is not increased by the taxes “paid” by District employees.
In fairness, the Almanac editorial mentions “..those same elected officials all pay taxes just like the rest of the residents..”; and that is certainly true for Mt. Lebanon School Board members, who are indeed elected but who are not paid by the District – they all have “day jobs.”
A better approach to this subject might have been if the Almanac had said that not everyone gets a cost of living raise to offset any increase in property taxes imposed by his employer!