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04/15/09
Town Council divided on proposed level of school funding
Town councilors are divided on a proposed $20 million school budget for 2009-10, one that would raise the overall tax rate in Cape Elizabeth 11 cents over the current $17.44, an increase of .6 percent.
Following a public hearing April 13, 2009, councilors tabled consideration of the school budget to a special meeting April 30, 2009, 7:30 p.m. in the Town Hall chamber. The postponement allows for the required number of days between adoption of the budget and a citizen validation vote, set for May 12, 2009.
Councilors did, however, take time to express their views on a 2009-10 school budget proposal that has taken a roller-coaster ride over state funding issues this winter and spring.
The initial school budget proposal for 2009-10 called for a 2-percent spending increase, with a 50-cent increase in taxes for education and anticipated a $421,000 shortfall in state general-purpose aid to education.
Later in February the state Department of Education announced that federal stimulus funds would be available to schools in Maine, restoring state funding to a level Cape Elizabeth officials thought would be equal to the current fiscal year. The School Department proposed a new, $20.2 million budget, up 1.9 percent over this year's with a tax rate increase of 10 cents for education.
Then in late March officials learned that state funding would instead be $504,000 less than predicted.
At their April 13 meeting the council approved a transfer of $200,000 from undesignated funds to the school's undesignated fund balance, to alleviate the impact the shortfall would have on taxes. The latest school budget, adopted by the School Board April 6, is up 1.1 percent over this year's and poses a 20-cent increase in the tax rate for schools, 1.6 percent over this year's rate.
Combined with decreased taxes from the municipal, county and Community Services budgets, the overall tax-rate increase proposed is .6 percent.
Three of the town councilors present at the April 13 meeting said they would favor sending a .6-percent tax rate increase to voters at the May 12 school budget validation, but three others said they favored a lower tax rate.
"I will probably vote against this April 30," said Councilor Anne Swfit-Kayatta, chairman of the council Finance Committee. "I don't think this is the time, in this economy, to be raising people's taxes." With a consumer price index at .2 percent, she said, this is a difficult time to increase spending. Competing needs need to be balanced so that everyone can afford to live here, Swfit-Kayatta said.
Councilors Sara Lennon and David Sherman said they supported the .6-percent increase. "I'm not sure everyone is aware of the magnitude of the 'parent tax', Lennon said, referring to fees parents are charged for their children's activities, including field trips and participation in sports. It's not unusual for some parents to pay upwards of $500 per child, she said. "To spread the responsibility to all the folks in Cape Elizabeth with a little bit of tax increase strikes me as fair, given the large extra tax some or most parents are asked to shoulder," Lennon said.
Councilor David Backer said he would likely vote to send the school budget out for the validation vote, "with the caveat that I don't support it."
"I think with this environment of recession, and that the municipal side has dug very deep, people may expect the schools to do the same thing," Backer said. However, this year, he said he is willing to send the School Board's budget out the voters first.
Last year, the first under the state's school consolidation law, the Town Council adopted a budget with a 4.6-percent tax increase that was rejected by voters. A second budget, with a 6-percent tax increase was also rejected. A compromise budget with a 5.3-percent tax increase was finally approved Sept. 2, 2008.
The middle ground was an option proposed by Town Council Chairman Jim Rowe, who said he would not support a .6 percent tax increase. "If we threw out a .3 percent I could see everybody saying 'what's the big deal?' I think it might be something everybody could get behind. It's in the interest of bringing people together in this town, which I think should be our priority right now," Rowe said.
Councilor Penny Jordan also said that should could not support a .6-percent increase. "The private sector is having to cut jobs and salaries, and make a lot of concessions to keep businesses running," Jordan said. She said the town needs to look at ways to gain efficiencies. "I think the reason we come back to the table every year is that there are people who feel they aren't getting a return on their investment," Jordan said.
Councilor Paul McKenney was absent.
Residents who spoke at a public hearing April 13 were nearly as divided as the council. The school budget drew the most public comment, with approximately two-thirds of the 40 speakers expressing opinions ranging from support for the .6-percent increase budget, to calls for no tax increase and an overhaul of how the schools operate.
Some speakers said they represented, or agreed with some of the ideas put forth by the citizen group "Cape For All". Wainwright Drive resident Bill DeSena said the goals of the group include excellence in education, fiscal prudence and transparent government. "We fully agree with everyone in this community that the No. 1 goal is to have great academics for our kids, that it affects property values," DeSena said. "I think where we differ is how you get there," he said.
Others who said they favor no tax increase said the school budget should reflect a world where jobs are being reduced and more is being asked of those still working. "I think that those institutions that rely on taxpayer money need to reflect what's going on in the for-profit world," said Fieldstone Road resident Rosemary Townsend.
However, other speakers said they believe Cape Elizabeth schools have already shown a decline because of funding limits over the last several years. "Already Yarmouth is viewed as the district to move to for new residents coming to the area," said Salt Spray Lane resident Dan Fishbein. He asked that the council send a .6-percent tax increase school budget for the validation vote.
Brentwood Road resident Christine Mackenzie also urged the council to send the .6-percent increase budget to the voters. The recent subsidy cuts by the Department of Education, she said, show that the state believes the Cape Elizabeth townspeople are capable of contributing more. "The state does not think that Cape spends too much on its schools," she told the council. "The majority of the seven of you decided that $200,000 of our taxpayer money should go to offset the state subsidy losses. I ask that you allow the thousands of voting citizens in Cape Elizabeth to decide if our efficiency and high performance are worth the modest tax increase that we are now subject to due to these state subsidy reductions," Mackenzie said.
The wording of the May 12 validation question will be the same as last year's, and will include an advisory question asking whether voters believe the school budget is too high, acceptable, or too low.
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