Are you ready for another big school tax increase? Well, start preparing now because all indications are, they’re planning one. During the most recent school board meeting, 11-21-24, Jeff Fox, school district business manager presented the year end summary and then described a major upcoming project, entitled GESA (Guaranteed Energy Savings Act) Phase III (High School Air Conditioning). Everyone agrees the high school needs air conditioning, but a couple of points need to be raised.
The school district has not been able to find grant money to fund the project. As a result, as shown in the image above, this project needs to be locally funded, that means you need to dig into your pocket and pay for it.
How much money are we talking here?
Isn’t it interesting the price tag is about the same as what was just spent on covering the football field with plastic grass?
It’s almost a done deal already!
Notice the two agenda items highlighted here. One says at the next meeting the GESA air conditioning project should be approved. At the following meeting they will approve a resolution not to exceed the Act 1 index. If you’re not familiar with Act 1, it’s a formula that calculates how much each school district can raise your taxes without asking taxpayers for permission. The limit has been over 7 percent, so they are really giving us a big break by saying they aren’t going to exceed the maximum they are allowed. Right. The same school district that squandered $4 million on plastic grass, now wants to spend another $4 million on air conditioning upgrades that should have been the priority in the first place.
If this is approved now, when the budget is presented later next year, the argument will be, “It’s already been voted on and passed, so we have to raise your taxes to pay for it.” See how that works? Hurry up and agree on a big project before the budget is put together and then say taxes must be raised to pay for it because now their hands are tied, they have no choice.
Spending your money is easy
They need money, so they raise your taxes. You don’t care, do you? It’s only money.
How about NO TAX INCREASE? If this project is absolutely necessary, start cutting somewhere else. Taxpayers have had enough of this.
Now you see why the agenda isn’t published earlier
When you see what they do in school board meetings, is it any wonder the superintendent refuses to publish the agenda any earlier than 24 hours before it starts? If there was more time, the citizens and taxpayers might be able to dig in, see what’s happening and decide to show up with uncomfortable questions and we can’t have that, can we?
Either show up or pay up
This is what happens when no one shows up at meetings. The same few of us who always attend can’t do this alone, so don’t be surprised when your school taxes take another big jump.
Just thought you would like to know.
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Steve LaFuria says
Can you publish what the tax revenue is per student and draw a comparison to other school districts? This would be one metric to evaluate the management of school board tax and spend policy.
Paul Crowe says
Tax revenue per student is not a useful comparison without looking, also, at how the money is spent and the results obtained from those expenditures. Identical expenditures between districts can have wildly different outcomes.
If you wish to look at some comparative data, you might begin by looking here.
Salvatore Michael Vella says
This is bull crap! Why we spending 4 million dollars on a football field when everyone including the pro’s want to go back to a dirt field. Wait and see how many more injuries our kids get.
Doctor D says
Tell me ,how many people in the NESD are retired and and on fixed income.
Getting more expensive to live in North East.
Joan Bubna says
What is wrong with our school board we cannot afford them let’s get a new board that can use a budget
Joan Bubna says
Does anyone hold the school board accountable for budget mandates
Paul Crowe says
The board consists of nine members. Their individual views and votes quite often differ. To hold them accountable, the public must first be familiar with how each member votes on the various items brought before them. The public can then decide which members deserve support at the next election.
Also remember, the spending plans and projects do not originate with the board, they come from the superintendent and other members of the school administration. The agenda and the items on it are then presented to the board for their approval or rejection.
Jeffery Lowes says
I agree with Mr. Lafuria above with the caveat of standardized test scores for all grades compared to county, state and national scores. Maybe we should see. how we rank and see where the money should be spent.
Paul Crowe says
Yes.
It would also be useful to compare public school outcomes vs expenditures to other alternatives such as charter schools, private schools and home schools.
Eric says
Private schools do not do standardized testing, you can however compare public schools to charter schools and I can tell you with confidence that the charter schools scores are no where near NESD scores. As far as comparing NESD to other local local districts we are upper-middle. I have charted it using state information when you questioned the scores in one of your opinion articals. I have had this conversation with you on your site before only to have you delete ninty percent of the conversation so I won’t go back and forth with you again on here.
America First says
So, how many of you all in the previous comments actually attend board mertings?? I’m not trying to take anything away from Mr. Crowe here, he attends the meetings. I’m sure he will confirm at least a couple board members do ask questions or make comments at the meetings! The board needs to hear from you and you can always email the Superintendent.
Eric says
So I’m going to ask a question on just one of the many options you have in this article. You say that the excuse to push a project through the budget is by approving it early and then say it was already approved. Please explain to me how you would do it differently. Anyone that understands the process would look at your opinion in this article and shake their head. The final budget adoption vote is usually in June to meet the July 1st state deadline. Capital projects need to be in order well before the end of school to have time to for the contractors to put you on their schedule and order materials they need to complete the project. In most cases it is a very tight schedule to have the project done before the next school year begins. So again please layout your opinion on how this process should be done. We will see how far this goes before you delete my posts again.
Paul Crowe says
Here’s an option, start the process sooner by explaining in detail to the public that will be paying for it, why the project is necessary, how it will be paid for, the potential impact on taxes and what other projects can be put on hold or de-prioritized because of the expense. Perhaps include a list of budget items that will be cut to help defray the cost. As noted above, the need for this project didn’t suddenly occur last week, it was years in the making, but the football field took precedence and students at the high school suffered. Now the taxpayers have to pay for that choice.
The administration has made decisions with very little, if any, public input. The board meetings provide little opportunity for any discussion and the administration operates in a relative vacuum. The public might choose differently or offer opinions on what might be cut. The school district is entirely funded by taxes and the taxpayers need greater input and control of the process.
Anyone from the school district is welcome to comment right here or submit an article to address these issues. Many members of the public would appreciate hearing from you.
Happy to have a civil conversation, Eric. That’s up to you.
Eric says
The football field conversation started in 2020. The track and field were failing. Drainage on the field and the track was becoming unusable. For safety of the students something needed to be done. As far as starting the process early, the AC in the high school started about 2 years ago and details on the project were giving at the last board meeting. Not sure how much earlier you think it should start. Everything I am saying can be confirmed in the minutes. Just because you were not there to hear the discussion doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. You can however do the research needed and find out all of what I have said is true.
When was i not civil?
NE Taxpayer says
I would like to see more transparency from the school administration. Do they have a list of projects that are pending? How are items prioritized? Maybe these large items should be put up for public vote? Since taxpayers are funding through taxes there needs to be more discussion prior to putting it on the budget. Let’s have a civil and respectful dialog.
Eric says
The school does a presentation every year with a 5 or 10 year( can’t remember which it is) look at capital projects. There is however stuff that happens that are not expected, example would be if a water heater fails and would need replaced. As far as having the public vote on stuff, that is why we vote people to the board. There will never be a time that everyone is happy. That is how Pa is set up. Ohio i believe has a voting system, from having family that live there i can tell you there are a lot of needed projects that don’t end up happening and it’s at the expense of the kids. Some schools don’t have transportation because it was voted to get rid of it by the tax payers and I’m not talking for intercity schools, rural districts as well.
Ted Jones says
As long as the district can legally raise taxes without a public vote they will.
Steve says
Need to get rid of the cross filing, unless you know the person you have no idea if they are Liberal or Conservative. Voters need to know who they are voting for, surely are not voting for anyone who okayed the last, what is it now, four hikes in a row?