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ANNUAL SCHOOL ELECTION 4/17/2007
Mendham:
Town Stuff:
ANNUAL SCHOOL ELECTION 4/17/2007
     By 07. 07. on Saturday, March 31, 2007 - 10:37 am: |
Another school election coming up... which means for most of you another opportunity to avoid taking any responsibility for the rotten government you enjoy griping about.
The regional high school budget should be the big issue this time around. The four year high school makes up about 40 percent of your total property-tax burden. The proposed budget calls for nearly a 6% tax increase, which means your total property taxs are likely to increase by over 5%... again.
The regional board of education provides a simplistic, yet still incomprehensible, PDF file (1.3meg) it calls a budget presentation... you can view the 10K worth of useful content on this Internet compatible page.
For context here is a brief summary of recent history... A few years ago, you the voters approved a big pile of borrowing... part of that borrowing was to finance expansion of the two schools, another part was to finance "capital reserve projects" like $500,000 worth of tennis courts. The regional municipalities are now paying $2 million a year in debt service on this $40 million of borrowing. A year-and-a-half ago, the school board asked you voters for permission to transfer $2 million from the "capital reserve account" to the over budget expansion project... they promised "no tax impact" and you approved the transfer. Logically for a transfer of funds to have "no tax impact" some spending must be defunded, or plainly put, canceled. Although the school board does not provide sufficient financial details to exactly follow the money trail... it certainly appears that no spending has been cancelled as promised and that you will be now funding what you once approved as a capital reserve project, a second time, as an annual expenditure... clearly creating a tax impact!
Subtracting the $500,000 tennis courts that you're being asked to refinance, again, in this annual budget. The annual budget increase for the high-school can be reduced to 4.5%... still well above inflation, and unsustainable as a long-term taxpayer imposition.
It should be noted that your town council, which has the power, and authority, to scrutinize the activities of the school board, will do nothing to address this problem of perpetual overspending, but complain in scapegoat fashion that their "hands are tied". |
| By 07. 2....... on Sunday, April 01, 2007 - 9:44 pm: |
Here is the text from the propaganda brochure the BOE distributes [I've added some commentary]
PROPOSED
HIGH SCHOOL
BUDGET AND THE
DISTRICT CONSTRUCTION
PROGRAM
The ongoing construction and renovation program is funded by the construction bond referendum previously approved by voters. Construction costs that are not covered by the referendum will be paid from pre-existing capital reserves set aside for this purpose in the 2006— 2007 budget. Therefore the construction program has no financial impact on the budget proposed for 2007—2008 other than interest earned from the bond will continue to be used to reduce local debt service on constituent municipalities. [of course we are ignoring our commitment to the voters to cut $2 million in capital reserve spending. ...and that reduction in local debt service is really just using interest gained on prematurely borrowed money, to partially pay to servicing the debt interest on the very same money, at a net loss to the public.]
Construction at West Morris Mendham High School is in full swing. A steel frame for its new addition was erected and renovated classrooms are being used by students. West Morris Central High School has installed a new sewer system and groundbreaking will likely begin this summer pending a scuccessful bid. [two years late and already $2 million over budget.]
West Morris Regional
High School District
www.wmrhsd.org
(908) 879—6404
10 South Four Bridges Road
Chester, NJ 07930
West Morris Regional High School Budget Information
Recent Legislation
The State of New Jersey recently passed legislation that will fundamentally alter the way school districts can construct their budgets. This legislation has increased the amount of state aid that our district receives white putting limits on the amount by which our budget can increase.
We have worked within these budget guidelines to craft a budget proposal that preserves the educational and co-curricular programs that we have traditionally offered to our communities. These include:
• A comprehensive program of studies that offers challenging and meaningful courses to all of our students. [obviously no civics courses on constitutional law]
• The largest and most successful International Baccalaureate program in the entire state.[publicly subsidized international crapola]
• Over 19 Advanced Placement courses (some of which are offered In conjunction with our IB class offerings). [realistically advanced students really shouldn't need high-school instruction or infrastructure]
• An alternative school, a freshman Previews Program and an ESL curriculum to meet the needs of diverse learners. ["diverse learners" ...a perversion of language that might even make Pollyanna puke.]
• A variety of clubs and intramural activities (55+) that serve over 75% of our students. [no doubt including a diverse learners club]
• An athletic program that fields over 47 varsity, junior varsity, and freshman teams with approximately 70% student participation district-wide. [people should be taxed out of their home so spotie can learn how to chase a ball at public expense?]
• A HSPA passing rate of 95%. and an average combined SAT score of 1,116. [considering the economic advantage the average student is raised in the numbers are unimpressive]
• A Freshman Learning Experience to ease the transition into high school. [what next, airbags on the front doors ]
Our Proposed Budget
Current programs will be maintained through a proposed budget increase of 3.78% This increase results in an annual average cost of $ 168 per household across the district. [A really sleazy bit of deceptive propaganda that does not account for the other 2.25% of the increase that will be incurred through "uncurrent" spending.]
Much of this increase is due to increased costs for special education, transportation and contractual benefits that include rising prescription and pension costs over which the district has little control. [and the "little control" they do have, they don't exercise]
In addition, the budget contains the following components that address rising student populations and anticipated curricular needs:
• An additional Mathematics teacher at West Morris Central.[A subject that could be easily taught on-line]
• An additional Science teacher at West Morris Mendham. [A subject that could be easily taught on-line]
• A new Lead Teacher at each school responsible for all of the elective areas of Art, Music, Technology, Home Economics and Business. (This does not require the hiring of new staff.) [A "new" consolidation of unrelated subjects... great idea]
• Increasing the number of approved coaches in two sports to address issues of safety and security of our athletes. [time for a federal Department of childhood recreation and security... apparently it takes all of childless villagers money to raise your child]
• Special Education technology training. [snot and drool don't mix with electronics]
:o)
In any budget defeat, these Items could be among the first to be cut. [the first thing to go should be the goddamn tennis courts]
Our Recent Budget History
Our last budget was defeated by only 54 votes district-wide. That defeat and the subsequent 'failure to agree" among the communities forced the district to delay its purchases and business operations until well into the summer, causing a delay in the purchase of textbooks, athletic equipment, and other student materials. [There wouldn't be any delays if you presented your budget earlier (November) and let the voters reject it at a real democratic election.]
The cuts imposed on the district amounted to over $300,000. [less than 1%] All areas of our educational program were affected. [only proving you are idiots as well as lying crooks]
An unresolved budget question could potentially have resulted In much greater cuts and would have put the district budget under the control of State.[a political appointee no doubt as scared of the teachers' union as the rest of his political party]
Cuts of an increased magnitude would have led to a reduction of teaching and support staff and the elimination of many student curricular, co-curricular, and athletic programs. [you might scare me when you actually get to something of "educational" value]
Please let your wishes be known in the April 17th budget election.[will I be able to wish for something like a real constitution and vote not to be $40 million in debt.]
PLEASE VOTE on Tuesday, Aprft 17th!
[your can count on me... Unfortunately if past experience is a guide my vote might not be counted.] |
| By 07. 07. 07. 2....... on Wednesday, April 04, 2007 - 8:06 pm: |
Here are some links to some information regarding the local (k-8) school budget. I find it, kind of oxymoronish that "educators" can't acquirer the meager knowledge and skills to produce Internet compatible documentation. PDF files are not user friendly and hiding information in Power Point Presentations is just plain silly... the simplistic Pollyanna content also insults the intelligence these educators profess to intend to instill.
Internet compatible conversion of the BOE budget presentation file. (use back button if you click links in the page)
Conversion of a PDF budget summary table.
While the 1% increase seems modest and tolerable, the fact that we're paying around a million dollars for special-ed related stuff doesn't seem reasonably justifiable. Smart people have a hard time finding any use for a high-school diploma... let alone a grammar school diploma. I wonder how many kids are sucking up this 1 million bucks? and I wonder realistically, what we socially get in return for the expenditure.
Also of note, is the fact that 10 percent of the budget is going to finance debt... Which I would estimate must be around $20 million... add that to the town debt, and the Mendham Borough portion of the regional high school debt, and you get a total of at least 35 million dollars.... I guess everyone figures on skipping town before this bill comes due.
____________
Beyond JUST hopefully voting NO on the two budgets... you will also consider "writing in" a vote for something-else instead of voting for any of the unopposed candidates for the BOE... here's a little background page on the local "candidates". |
| By 07. 32... on Thursday, April 05, 2007 - 9:08 am: |
| Special Education technology training. [snot and drool don't mix with electronics] Actually, this is a good expenditure, with the scanners in use at supermarkets and the electronic cart herders, just teaching the proper grip of a broom handle is not longer adequate. |
| By 07. 2....... on Thursday, April 05, 2007 - 10:12 am: |
| Truth is I am generally for technology training, I just couldn't pass up on the joke... but then again, considering how much expensive technology the town has wasted on "public servants" ill-equipped to use it efficiently... I'm betting any technology instruction taking place at the high-school is a case of the blind, leading the blind. |
| By 07. 32... on Thursday, April 05, 2007 - 3:23 pm: |
| With the vast array of "housewife helpers" available these days, I'm surprised that there is no request for "technology funds for Sex Ed". |
| By 07. 2....... on Saturday, April 07, 2007 - 8:19 am: |
Apparently the budget information provided on the local school board website (links in above post) is inaccurate. The newspaper is reporting a 4.76 percent increase--well above the less than and 1% fraudulently implied on the website using apparently phony figures. Even if you think annual 5 percent budget increases, along with ever-increasing debt, is acceptable. The effort on the part of both boards of education to deceptively manipulate the budget numbers they provide on their web sites has really earned a NO vote of confidence.
quote:$9.5M budget for 2007-08 boosting school tax
By BELISA SILVA Staff Writer
04/05/2007
MENDHAM – The owner of an average borough home assessed at $878,895 will pay about $184.64 more in school taxes, if the proposed $9.5 million budget for the 2007-08 school year is approved by voters on Tuesday, April 17.
In total, the proposed budget for the grades K-8 district is $9,529,218. That’s an increase of $433,279, or 4.76 percent, from the 2006-07 budget of $9,095,939 million.
The tax rate, should the budget be approved, will rise 2.1 cents per $100 of assessed value or $21 per $100,000 of assessment
The current school year tax rate is 51.5 cents per $100 or $515 per $100,000 of assessed value. Under the proposed budget, it will go up to 53.6 cents per $100 or $536 per 100,000 of assessed value.
Board of Education Business Administrator Judy Favino said the average home assessed at almost $900,000 will pay $4,719.67, if the budget is approved. In this current school year, the same homeowner is paying $4, 535.03, which is a difference of $184.64
Favino said the proposed budget had been constructed using a “zero-based” budgeting method, meaning it was crafted from zero and was not based on past spending.
The 2005-06 Mendham Borough school budget was narrowly defeated but Favino said it passed in the other years during her tenure as business administrator.
Budget Explained
Although the budget totals more than $9.5 million, residents will be responsible for the tax levy, which totals $8,802,804 which includes pre-approved debt service. On the ballot, residents will be voting on the figure $7,906,241, which does not include debt service.
The 2007-08 tax levy has increased by 4.792 percent from the 2006-07 school year and is currently 92 percent of the total budget revenue.
The district serves 678 children and the current per pupil cost is $11,589 ,which Favino said is a “lower per-pupil cost than similar districts to Mendham.”
State aid had been frozen for a number of years, but will increase 3 percent in 2007-08, totaling $338,993, which is $9,874 more than last year’s figure of $329,119.
Less than one percent of the total budget responsibility, or $3,000 will be covered by capital reserve interest and about 2 percent, or $202,050, of the responsibility will be covered by federal and restricted aid.
Schools Superintendent Janie Edmonds said the biggest reasons for the increase include normal maintenance costs, salaries, utilities, insurance, benefits and costs of supplies.
“These are costs that normally go up every year,” Edmonds said.
Under the proposed budget, 48 percent, or $4,488,899, of the total budgeted amount would go towards the cost of instruction and 14 percent, or $1,320,673, would cover the cost of benefits. Nine percent of the total budget, or $895,944, can be attributed to debt service and 2 percent, or $210,540 will cover costs relating to transportation.
Seven percent of the total proposed budget, or $650,398 will go towards student services and another 7 percent, or $703,899, will cover costs relating to plant operations. Two percent, or $233,913 will go to business and technology costs and 8 percent, or $786,012 will cover administration costs.
Two percent or $202,050 is budgeted for special projects and one percent, or $36,890 is budgeted in capital outlay.
Edmonds said the proposed 2007-08 budget does not cut any programming or staffing, but will allow for some program shifting. She said that for the first time, Mendham Borough will create a program for pre-school children, which will keep students who had been transported out of district, in the district for instruction.
“This program will support increased readiness for our children within their own school district and will bring the cost of this state-mandated program under district control,” Edmonds said.
Some other initiatives, which are part of the proposed budget, include a writing and reading project.
“This year, through Teachers College at Columbia University, we developed and initiated a program to support expert writing instruction in grades K-8,” Edmonds said. “This budget will support integrating the reading component.”
Edmonds said the proposed budget includes a few cost savings initiatives, including installation of motion detectors to control lighting costs and an increase in shared services with other districts.
The budget also includes district-wide technology upgrades.
“We will move away from a few desktop computers in each classroom to laptop carts that can be shared and used wherever needed,” the superintendent said. “This initiative is supported by a move to wireless technology.”
©Recorder Community Newspapers 2007
|
| By 07. 172... on Saturday, April 07, 2007 - 10:08 pm: |
| Cut 10% of the staff, Cut 10% of the operating costs. Leverage E-BOOKs. Outsource |
| By 07. 07. 2....... on Tuesday, April 10, 2007 - 1:15 am: |
| Just as an FYI... at the April 2nd meeting it was revealed that the tennis courts will now cost over $750,000 AND the municipal budget will AGAIN increase in the double digits... some 15%. A lot of you are going to be looking at nearly a $1,000 increase in your property taxes... as it seems likely total property taxes will increase some 8 or 9% |
| By 07. 07. on Monday, April 16, 2007 - 10:12 am: |
| Just curious, is anybody going to vote tomorrow? It seems like they've extended the hours a bit so people other than the soccer moms can actually vote. |
| By 07. 2....... on Wednesday, April 18, 2007 - 6:52 am: |
West Morris Board of Ed Mendham Boro
1/1 100.00%
Under Votes 215
Over Votes 0
Vote Count Percent
- Jacqueline Schram 481 98.36%
Write-In 8 1.64%
Total 489 100.00%
Mendham Boro Board of Ed
1/1 100.00%
Under Votes 655
Over Votes 0
Vote Count Percent
- Vincent Mazzola 491 33.70%
- Christopher M. Beck 486 33.36%
- Carla McEnroe 471 32.33%
Write-In 9 0.62%
Total 1,457 100.00%
West Morris Regional Mendham Boro General Fund
1/1 100.00%
Under Votes 15
Over Votes 0
Vote Count Percent
- Yes 394 57.18%
- No 295 42.82%
Total 689 100.00%
Mendham Borough General Fund
1/1 100.00%
Under Votes 4
Over Votes 0
Vote Count Percent
- Yes 421 60.14%
- No 279 39.86%
Total 700 100.00%
Bad news for the rational minority even Washington Township voted for the $750,000 tennis courts... enjoy your 10% percent property tax increase-- you the asshole people -- certainly asked for it. Complete election results |
| By 07. 172... on Wednesday, April 18, 2007 - 9:38 pm: |
| What is wrong with this town passing an increased school budget. Why did we not cut heads and get up with the times. Stop buying books use the internet. |
| By 07. 07. 07. 2....... on Thursday, April 19, 2007 - 12:07 am: |
What is wrong with this town passing an increased school budget.
In a country of assholes willing to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on a retard president's revenge wars, the answer seems simple "this town" has its American quota of hypocrite fascist retarded assholes.
Why did we not cut heads and get up with the times.
We are up with the times... the "End Times" you get when you "play" tennis while Rome burns.
Stop buying books use the internet.
Have you looked at the "NEW" Borough website
...you have to scroll on every sub page just to get the to the subject title of the page. The moron majority, along with the Big Brother business and fascist government they empower, has vast wastelanded the Internet in record time.
The sad pitiful truth is a few motivated individuals like myself could no doubt build the best educational website on the entire world wide Web with the $750,000 to be wasted on these frivolous publicly financed tennis courts.
of course I've written more on this subject. |
| By 07. 2....... on Friday, April 27, 2007 - 7:09 pm: |
2007-08 regional budget sails through
04/23/2007
Voters in five municipalities have responded with a “yes” vote for the 2007-08 West Morris Regional High School budget, providing substantial margins in every town.
The $37.09 million tax levy passed by a final tally of 3,294 to 2,148, not including absentee ballots.
In Washington Township, voters said “yes” by a 1,734 to 1,135 margin. Voters in the Chesters gave the spending proposal a 62.25 percent approval, by a 521 to 316 total.
In Mendham Borough, 394 approved and 295 rejected the budget. The pro-budget tally in Mendham Township was 645 to 402.
Voters in three communities elected unopposed candidates to the Board of Education.
In the Chesters, James H. Johnston was returned to the school board with 578 votes with nine write-ins.
For a Mendham Borough seat,
incumbent Jacqueline Schram received 481 votes, with eight write-in ballots cast.
Incumbent Michael Raj received 1,650 seats for a three-year term in Washington Township, with 18 write-in ballots cast.
Passage of the budget affects homeowners in each community differently.
Taxpayers in Chester Borough will see a decrease of 4-cents per $100 or $40 per $100,000 valuation.
The rate will go from 31.05 cents per $100 or $310 per $100,000 of assessment to 27.53 cents per $100 or $275 per $1`00,000.
By comparison, homeowners in Chester Township have an increase of 3.4 cent per $100 or $34 per $100,000 valuation.
Chester Township’s rate will go from 34.64 cents per $100 or $346 per $100,000 to 37.02 cents per $100 or $370 per $100,000.
Property owners in Washington Township will have an increase of 4 cents per $100 or $40 per $100,000 valuation.
Washington Township’s rate will go from 70.7 cent per $100 or $707 per $100,000 of assessment to 74.49 cents per $100 or $745 per $1`00,000.
In Mendham Borough, the tax rises by 1.5 cents per $100 or $15 per $100,000 valuation. It will boost the rate from 32.3 cents per $100 or $323 per $100,000 to 33.9 cents per $100 or $339 per $100,000.
In Mendham Township, the tax impact will be an additional 2 cents per $100 or $20 per $100,000 of valuation. That will mean a rise from the current rate of 36.26 cents per $100 or $363 per $100,000 of assessment to 38.30 cents per $100 or $383 per $100,000 of assessment.
©Recorder Community Newspapers 2007 |
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