By Bob Lemken
Contributor
As a Burlington citizen and Wisconsin taxpayer, it is with great interest that I have been following the actions and decisions of the Burlington Area School District as reported in the Burlington Standard Press and the comments offered by several concerned local residents in the Letters to the Editor section of the paper extending over the last several weeks.
The major focal point of the recent BASD meetings and the concerns of many taxpaying citizens has been the proposed 2011-12 school budget, which includes a 3.69 percent increase in the tax levy. This proposal created a contentious atmosphere at the recent School Board meetings and has fostered a number of opposing views being expressed in the Letters to the Editor section of the Standard Press.
Appearing in the Sept. 22 issue of the Standard Press was a letter submitted by an individual who criticized the demeaned the opinions of a number of individuals who attended the Aug. 29 School Board meeting, assuming that a vote was to be taken regarding the imposition of the 3.69 percent tax levy increase.
Personally, I took umbrage with the writer’s innuendo and characterization of the attendees who opposed the tax levy, including my wife, as having a “narrow-minded agenda” and assumed, incorrectly, that she and the likeminded individual were all members of the We Vote Burlington. This contributor also stated the “cuts already carved in this budget” would result in the loss of experienced teachers, larger class sizes and a reduced curriculum. The author failed to provide any empirical data to support these assertions.
Unfortunately, during the proceedings of the Aug. 29 School Board meeting, the attendees were not informed that a “vote” that was taken regarding the tax levy was merely a straw vote and only reflected the opinions of the individuals who attended the meeting, and that the decision of the board regarding the tax levy had been determined and would be implemented. This situation begs the question: Why was a vote conducted?
Subsequently, it was reported in the Oct. 6 issue of the Standard Press that BASD was able to save $800,000 by negotiating a health care plan that would enable the district to not require the teachers to contribute to their health care plan. As reported in the Sept. 15 edition of the Standard Press the proposed 2011-12 budget included a 1.7 percent pay increase for the teachers.
During the current challenging local economic conditions it appears that BASD apparently does not believe that teachers should be subjected to the economic tribulations of the taxpaying citizen who provide the funding for the school budget. It should also be noted that the teachers are no longer obligated or mandated to pay the WEAC union dues, which affords them the opportunity to save approximately an additional $1,000 per year.
Assuming that the date reported in the Sept. 15 edition of the Standard Press is correct, “the approved tax levy for 2011-12 is $20.4 million up from $19.6 million last year.” The reported also noted “However that number is not set in stone, as the district is still waiting for the final student enrollment counts and a finalization of state aid.” Without considering the unknown student enrollment numbers and a finalization of the state aid, would not the $800,000 savings in the negotiated health care plan offset the need or substantially reduce the proposed tax levy to meet the 2011-12 budget?
The BASD should be commended for utilizing one of the tools provided in the governor’s budget repair act that enabled the district to negotiate a lower health care plan, but they should be admonished for failing to require the teachers to contribute the 12.5 percent of the premium for the health insurance which would further reduce the need for a 3.69 percent tax levy increase.
Although I am of the opinion that the current School Board members have failed to apply due diligence in regard to the development of the budget, I am not a proponent of the unruly and disruptive protests that we have witnessed in Madison earlier this year.
However, as a citizen of Burlington I do believe we should participate peacefully in the democratic process and maximize the use of the ballot box and elect members of the School Board that represent opinions of the majority of their constituents and have the courage to make the necessary decisions and construct a budget that balances income and expenditures.
Bob Lemken is a Burlington Area School District resident who lives in Spring Prairie. The opinions expressed here are his an not necessarily of this newspaper or Southern Lakes Newspapers LLC.
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