The district had previously cut $16 million and 200 jobs from next year's spending plan. District officials say they will now need to cut another $16 million, which is expected to lead to scores of teachers getting laid off and the end of regular bus transportation.
Update – Empower Texans | "Hindsight" costing Dallas ISD taxpayers millions | By DMatocha June 23 2011 – Four-star hotels, luxury spas, fine dining and catered food, teams of lawyers…. For Dallas ISD, money is no object. The district spent over $57 million over just four years, not a dime of which went towards educating children . . . Let’s look at some examples: $300,000 at Atlanta Bread Co, $86,000 at Chick-fil-a, $1.7 million on promotional items, such as mugs and T-shirts, $488,000 to rent space and cater meals from Aramark Events and Infomart . . .Voters say 'No' to El Paso ISD tax election | By ABC 7 Reporter Daniel Marin, June 17 2011 – After all the votes were counted, the results were overwhelmingly against the El Paso Independent School District's tax proposal. 14,480 voters cast their ballot on election day and during early voting for the district's tax ratification election. The results: 9,851 - or 68% - percent said 'no' to the tax hike. Only 4,6291 - or 32% - were in favor.
Note: Hays County has 4 school districts that are expected to share an estimated $13 million in state funding cuts. The Dripping Springs ISD announced June 16 that its board of trustees approved a 2011-12 budget of $33.8 million that will absorb an estimated $2.5 million reduction from the state and will not necessitate a tax rate increase. The district dipped into a reserve account of $18 million to balance its budget. See the press release at the district's web site here. No information about the status of the new budgets, or the possibility of calling a tax (increase) ratification election, can be gleaned from the web sites of the Hays Consolidated (512.268.2141), San Marcos Consolidated (512.393.6700) or Wimberley (512.847.2414) ISDs.
Send your comments and questions to your local school district administration or click on the "comments" at the bottom of the story
By Aman Batheja
abatheja@star-telegram.com
Fort Worth Star-Telegram | Wednesday June 22, 2011 | Read the entire story
The decisive defeat of a suburban Tarrant County school district's effort to raise their tax rate to cover a state funding shortfall is viewed by many as a possible sign that similar revenue raising efforts by other Texas school districts will face the same stiff opposition from voters.
Keller school district voters on Saturday roundly rejected a 13-cent increase in the tax rate that district officials had said is needed to avoid further layoffs and cuts. With more than 14,000 ballots cast, 56 percent of voters opposed the measure.
The election was the first effort by a Texas school district to raise taxes since the end of the regular legislative session in Austin, according to education officials and political organizers. That first-in-line status helped draw considerable interest to the election from outside the school district.
"I think it was important to stop this tax hike so that other ISDs reconsider their plans," said Giovanni Capriglione, a conservative activist from Southlake who helped organize KISD Families for Fiscal Responsibility, a group that rallied opposition against the measure.
In a matter of weeks, the group raised over $10,000 and drew more than 500 supporters on Facebook.
12 comments:
I'm sorry for all the teachers who were laid off, but perhaps the defeat of this Keller school tax hike proposal will put the TX Lege on notice that their slashing of funds to school districts will not
be replaced by additional school tax burdens on local taxpayers.
Let the Lege take the blame for the sorry state of educataion in our state.
Whoops! I realize that my typo of
"educataion" is hilarious!
"Keller school district voters on Saturday roundly rejected a 13-cent increase in the tax rate"
End of story! That is the way things are, due to the School Boards stealing from the property owners. We have had enough. I will fight with everything I have to prevent the local WISD Board for dipping into my pocket any deeper that they already do.
Anonymous June 23, 10:32 AM is correct.
Local property tax increases are already too high. Sustainable education funding needs to be supplemented from the state level .
Additionally, school district superintendent and assistant superintendent salaries should be reduced by 10% to 20% statewide.
Teachers who have attained the highest TRS retirement benefit based on the age/years of service formula should be given strong incentives to retire immediately and be replaced by younger teachers with new ideas and higher energy who are willing to enter the districts at lower starting salaries.
At the state level, a sales tax for on-line retailers (the same as for brick and mortar retailers) should be implemented and some or all of that money should be used for education.
Another idea would be for a state administered but privately run casino industry positioned in each of the four major cities, with all net profits going to fund inner city public schools, where the tax base is in shambles due to suburbun flight. These casinos would be far enough away from the Indian casinos that little revenue drain would occur.
Rocky, it took awhile but I finally found something to agree with you on. Casinos are a great way to raise funds for just about anything and that is the problem with the idea. The State will do like they have in all the other States; get the law passed and then raid the coffers for all kind of emergency projects. The Governor's mansion would be a candidate for such theft. Another hungry group at the trough would be parks and environmentalists.
The Bill would have to have hard protections against these raiders and other projects like flood and hurricane relief.
When it is in force and paying off, reduce my property tax since I would not want gambling it to be a supplement but complete financing of education. The Casinos would have to be unlimited like Vegas or New Jersey. That would piss off the Blue noses but that would be just tough nuggies. Let them all move to Georgia or Alabama. I wouldn't worry about the so-called Indians either, they can figure out another way to shake down the public.
Rocky,
Since Texas desperately needs more revenue, I personally wouldn't mind having casinos in Texas. We already have a lottery, and that is surely gambling.
We did get the lottery, but it passed because the State said the money would go for education. I'm
pretty sure that pledge has gone by the board, and the lottery funds go either into the General Fund or wherever else the State wants to send them.
If we did allow casinos, I'd like to have it written into the enabling legislation that the money would go to school districts only.
Why do casinos have to have State approval to exist? The State doesn't prohibit adult/porno movie stores or nightclubs which spew drunken drivers onto the streets? (Though cities can dictate that a porn store must be a couple of blocks away from a public school)
Good thoughts one and all.
Da Kingfish makes a good point that the State political crooks would pilfer the net revenues from casinos, just like they reneged on the Lottery deal.
Da Kingfish says:
"The Bill would have to have hard protections against these raiders and other projects like flood and hurricane relief."
We totally agree. For casinos to work - to fund education - politicians scamming the net revenues must be protected from happening.
See, Da Kingfish, even some liberals like gambling (just not with other people's money). I'm glad we could agree on something.
Finally, let you, Peter Stern and I help get a sales tax exemption for all retailers - not just selective local economy killers, and we can agree on something else.
It is a fact that 80 percent of our property taxes go to public education. That's a heck of a lot for a system that doesn't work very well for our children.
Casinos may contribute quite a bit to a state's income; however, they do a lot of negative things as well.
Two states I lived in, New York and New Mexico, each approved casino gambling. In NM the Native Americans control most of the Casinos. In both states legalize casino gambling attracted various populations that cause a lot of problems, from escalated criminal activity to increased prostitution and health issues.
We have to ask if we're willing to accept the postive AND the negative additions to the Texas community.
I am open to casino gambling, but with open eyes to many issues that will occur if and when we accept them into the Texas community.
People gonna do what people gonna do, and that applies to gambling, too. The State of Texas is losing revenue to nearby gambling states. You know that folks are determined to gamble if they drive or ride a crowded night bus to be able to do so.
If people are going to gamble anyhow, why shouldn't Texas have the money instead of Louisiana, say? And probably some auto deaths would be avoided by gamblers returning at late night to Texas.
Hard fact is you just can't save some people from themselves...
Peter Stern, New Mexico and New York are high crime States to begin with. I think gambling is not the cause of most crime in those God forsaken States. I lived in Colorado for 22 years and we had limited stakes gambling without any real increase in crime except that brought into the State from New and Old Mexico. Yes, I am referring to the Latino Gangs.
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