This isn’t the time to be nice.
This is the time to be honest in sharing accurate information, but it isn’t the time to be nice.
When you drive down the road and see some neighbors with YES signs and others next door or across the street with NO signs, you know this referendum is a polarizing issue.
Both sides feel strongly… I get that. Franklin Township schools provided me with my education and now I’m entrusting the school system to educate my children and present them with the same (or even more) opportunities than I have had as a result of my outstanding education. I want the best for the schools because I want the best for my kids. How can anyone argue with that?
But, when I approach this referendum issue, I don’t approach it only as a Dad with 2 girls in the schools. I approach it with 4 years of school board experience from 2004-2008. I served at a critical time in the recent history of the school system. In my tenure, the prior board had just built the stadium for 4.3 million dollars while we had portable classrooms next door at the middle school and Kitley Intermediate almost as quickly as we built it because there weren’t enough classrooms. We had portables at elementary schools and classes had assigned bathroom times because we were in the midst of the 46% growth Franklin Township experienced between 2000 and 2007. I served at a time when Dr. Carver was retiring and we hired a new Superintendent in Dr. Bourke half way through my 4 year term. I served at a time where we went away from the status quo of using the same school architects for project after project and started looking for cost and efficiency… a time when we sought out cookie cutter schools that had already been designed… buildings that would be nice for our kids… but we were looking for cost effective ways to get things done and saving a million dollars in design work was saving a million dollars.
There are always times when someone runs for a School Board position with an agenda, but I’ve said you know a good school board member when you don’t know what their hot button issue is. I didn’t have an agenda except to make these schools the best they could be for my kids and my nieces and nephews and the families in the Franklin Township community. If you brought me an issue, I’d tell you what I thought was in the best interests of the students, while keeping in mind the interests of the taxpayers. That was how I made decisions. Cost versus value was always a consideration… as it is in any reasonable household. The students were the product and just like my remodeling company won’t take a shortcut on a project in someone’s home, I wasn’t about to take a shortcut on the education of kids in the Franklin Township Community.
So, I’ll be honest… hearing people trash the Superintendent or the NEEDS of the schools to maintain the current level of services goes right through me. I hired Dr. Bourke and while I was fond of him initially, today I think he is one of the finest men I have ever met. You may not agree and that is fine, but don’t talk about this school system trying to hide information or screw you out of tax dollars. He lives in the community. He cares about these kids more than you will ever know. And he has a staff of dedicated people… from his administration and teachers to the bus drivers and building support staff.
This is a great school system. They turn out great kids who get into great schools and achieve great things. Franklin Township is known for its academics, its athletics, it is known nationally for its music programs… and it is fair to say in almost every area it achieves success. And, that success has lured thousands of homeowners to live in the community… higher taxes or not.
The decision you have is whether or not you place any sort of value on those things.
This is not the time to be nice. This is the time for you to be informed. If you don’t choose to be informed, then quit reading and go do what you’re gonna do. I don’t have any interest in talking to you anyway. Find yourself a red sign, add some made up numbers to it, and place it in your yard. However, if you are open-minded and you just really want more information to help you make a decision regarding whether or not supporting this referendum is the right thing to do for you, then grab a cup of coffee and keep reading. I’m not going to place any spin on any topic I address below. If I can attribute misinformation to a particular person or a group, I’m going to call them out.
So, let’s begin.
The opposition who plans to “Vote No” has started to emerge from their holes and they share a variety of misconceptions and false information with anyone who will blindly listen. They are twisting facts either out of ignorance or good old bad intentions.
I’m going to begin with the recent comments from the “supposed” expert, Dr. Matt Will, Director of External Relations and Associate Professor of Finance, School of Business, at the University of Indianapolis.
ISSUE 1
Dr. Will claims that the Franklin Township Schools are getting 5.3 million dollars in additional funding in 2011 above and beyond 2010. He references the 1782 Notice that is reviewed and approved by the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF). His point… why does there need to be a referendum when the state is giving them more money.
Since Dr. Will is either a blatant liar or much less intelligent than his position might require him to be to speak about issues such as these, you are now going to get a DLGF lesson and in 3 minutes will understand the difference between “appropriations” and “actual cash”.
Form 1782 says the DLGF has APPROVED APPROPRIATIONS to the school system in a certain amount. As Dr. Will states, those appropriations grew 5.3 million dollars between 2010 and 2011. So, when he says that, most of you think that is cash in the bank. IT IS NOT!
Approved appropriations typically always exceed your actual revenue you have to work with. Approved are appropriations are “what you are allowed to spend, but not exceed”… they are NOT tied at all to what cash you actually have available to you. So, when Dr. Will tells you Franklin Township received an increase in funding of 5.3 million dollars, that is a blatant lie and he knows it. Because of the property tax caps, FTCSC does not have the cash it needs to sustain these operations. Thus, the need for this freaking referendum people!
So, as an example, when that same DLGF form says FTCSC has 6.0 million in appropriations for the Capital Projects Fund to maintain all of the school buildings… that is all well and good, but the tax levy only brings in 3.0 million in revenue or “CASH” to this fund.
Dr. Will in all of his ignorance is making the specific case for why this referendum is needed. We don’t have the cash needed to fund the appropriations that are approved by the DLGF and the State of Indiana. They are approving the expenditure, but not giving the money needed.
To take this a step further, FTCSC has been funding this shortfall in recent years through its Rainy Day Fund in order to offset that difference between approved appropriations and the actual cash we have.
If Dr. Will is a true economics guy, he should know better than to throw these numbers around.
ISSUE 2
Another Dr. Will classic issue at the moment…
If there is a 10.9 million dollar funding gap in 2011, then he is asking why FTCSC asking for 13.0 million through the referendum?
Imagine if you will for a moment that you are the Chief Financial Officer of Franklin Township Schools and you know you currently have a big funding problem not only this year, but in the years to come. So, once you come to the conclusion that you need to engage in a referendum and ask for a vote of support from the community in order to fix that funding problem, you then have to figure out and ask for a referendum amount right now that will cover you for the next 7 YEARS. Not just this year with what you know right now, but something that provides you with enough money to fund year 7 in 2017.
And here’s what you know right now…
The Assessed Value of homes has been on the decline for the last 4 years. What if it keeps dropping? You have to figure out what Assessed Value will look like in another 7 years? That by itself is practically impossible.
Next, what are the effects of the potential charter school and voucher funding issues being kicked around by the legislature?
What will the state do with the funding formula? That is currently impossible to figure out what it will look like this year, let alone 7 years down the road. By the way, this is the formula that has been absolutely screwing Franklin Township and penalizing it for being a “growing” school district for years.
What will be the needs of our facilities in the next 7 years? Will a boiler go out? Will a roof leak?
What are the costs of health insurance going to do between now and year 7? There isn’t anyone with this answer… but I bet we can all reasonably assume it will only increase from past experience.
So, once again, if we have a 10.9 million dollar funding gap in 2011… what might that funding gap look like in 2017?
Based on all of that analysis… and quite frankly the calculated, logical “guessing” of our needs 7 years from now… the school system said the need could be 13.0 million in 2017.
Will it be? Not necessarily, but I don’t know and you don’t know exactly what the need will be. Neither does Mitch Daniels, the DLGF, and certainly not Dr. Matt Will. Just know that the 13.0 million is nothing more than a group of intelligent people making a guess to 7 years down the road knowing they have a SCHOOL BOARD telling them they want that number to be as SMALL as possible. In the end, 13.0 million was the smallest they were comfortable making the number for year 7.
So, the next question in line is… What happens if the schools don’t need the money that is projected today?
Issue 3
The Franklin Township Community School Corporation won’t levy the community and ask for funds unless they are associated with maintaining the current programs and services.
Now, here’s where you start in with the “I don’t trust the schools” garbage.
I guess if you have that trust issue, you just have bigger problems than my information will help you with today for a vote on May 3rd.
Here is what I will tell you… and this won’t make me any friends I am sure.
I think the School Board made a major mistake after the first failed referendum by caving to the pressure of the community members begging to find a way to keep Wanamaker and Acton Elementary schools open. I don’t say this because I wanted them to close. Heck, I attended Wanamaker and my kids attended Acton… so I love both schools... but you as a community won’t take them seriously that these devastating cuts will be made. Guess what? These cuts will be made. No question. So, I emailed the Board Members at that time and told them they were “chicken bleep” because they backed off a decision that not only was the financially responsible decision, but it also would be a visible example for you in the community to understand how dire the financial situation is with the property tax caps in place. I was not happy and think they made this a much more difficult referendum. I know that if the parents of FTCSC kids do not turn out in absolute mass to support this, it will be an uphill battle. There are too many selfish people in the world, and even in Franklin Township, who will not support this regardless of who it hurts.
Now, having said all of that… I understand why the School Board “wanted to do” this. The referendum had already failed. They knew there would have to be another referendum request. They just wanted to try to maintain services for kids with the hope of success on the second request.
Issue 4
Okay Geoff, you say they don’t have to assess the entire .75 per $100 in assessed value that is being requested. What will they do instead of assessing the entire .75 per $100?
My Answer – Look at the events of the last 2 weeks alone. In just 2 weeks, the Governor has announced $150 million in education funding that would be restored (although a lot of that is already earmarked for specific programs), the teachers made concessions to the tune of $1.7 million in savings to the school system, and there is an outside chance that the funding formula currently being debated in the legislature will restore the $2.5 million Mitch Daniels took away from Franklin Township schools in each of the last 2 years because of a lack of money at the state level.
If all of those things were to happen, each of them would reduce the amount of the requested levy for taxpayers should this referendum pass on May 3rd. So, who knows what the first year levy request might be? I know Dr. Bourke has publicly stated that it would be .75 as it is being advertised, but that was before some of these events. It could absolutely be less than that in year one. I know you will have a Superintendent, a School Board and a school CFO who would love to be able to tell the community the total amount of the approved levy isn’t needed.
Issue 5
Well, who is going to keep the schools from just taking all of the taxpayer money?
ANSWER – The Indiana DLGF employs people whose job is to wake up each morning and assess school budgets. They are the FINAL say in a Government Entities Budget. If Franklin Township schools can’t prove to them why they need all .75 of that tax levy to make their budget work, the DLGF won’t approve it. The DLGF’s sole purpose is to protect the taxpayer.
They got a lot of teeth several years ago when Mitch Daniels wanted to put a limit on the dollars spent for school construction. We got our projects approved because we were responsible in our investments in buildings… but many schools were turned away. This was the initiation of the expanded role of the DLGF under Governor Daniels.
Dr. Matt Will is very fond of referencing DLGF documents, so I am sure he can tell the “Vote No” supporters that the DLGF is very powerful and very demanding in their school budget oversight … but I am guessing he doesn’t want you to know since he is a Franklin Township resident whose primary focus at this time is to fight the referendum by going on radio shows and talking about how teachers are telling parents to Vote YES.
Issue 6
Opponents say “YOUR TAXES WILL BE GOING THROUGH THE ROOF! FORECLOSURES WILL GROW!”
FACT - Your property taxes after a YES VOTE for the referendum on May 3rd will NOT be higher than any tax bill you have paid to date, including this most recently completed year of 2010. In reality, the taxes you pay after a YES VOTE will still be lower than this past year. You paid 1.5% in property taxes this last year. Even after a YES VOTE, your taxes will fall below a 1.5% tax rate. Here’s the math. The result of 1.5% of a $150k home is $2,250 in property taxes due. Take the 1% tax cap of $1,500 on the same home and add $489 for the .75 assessment. This gets you a total property tax cost of $1,989.
You have yet to pay the property taxes at the fully reduced 1% cap because those tax reductions are not taking place until this year’s May tax bill that will come due.
People refer to a 33% increase in property taxes for a YES VOTE. That is correctly stated. However, it is NOT 33% more than what you have been paying. That is a distortion of the facts. It is 33% more than what you “will pay” this year in May and November.
So, it is a FACT to say that next year’s property tax bill after a YES VOTE will still be less than last year’s property tax bills.
I read the following reference to an editorial in the Franklin Township Informer:
As Phil Ross (teacher, and former Franklin Twp. School Board member for 20 years) states in the Franklin Township Informer on 4/13/2011, “ It is wrong because it will significantly increase your mortgage payment, and as a result, undoubtedly increase the rate of home foreclosures in the township. When compared to homes outside of the township, Franklin Twp. homes will carry such a large tax burden that they will be very difficult to sell.” “A yes vote is wrong because this tax will last for 7 years. It will then have to be repeated for another 7 years, since there is no incentive for the administration to make further cuts.”
My response is this: Don’t tell me about foreclosures being created by supporting this referendum. The referendum is NOT increasing the CURRENT tax burden FT residents have been accustomed to paying in recent years, so the referendum won’t be creating foreclosures for any of those people. The referendum will simply take the reduced rates residents will see this coming May / November and make them higher than they would have been, but they will still be less than the property taxes of this last year. If people are in their homes today… and they have managed to make their current mortgage payments and fulfill their property tax obligations to date… then they should continue to be able to do so after this referendum passes. To look at it any other way is twisting facts.
Issue 7
The red “Vote No” signs around the township that have numbers hand written on them that are erroneous. The printer of the signs on Franklin Road was giving out an incorrect property tax calculation, so the numbers were astronomical and incorrect. How were they wrong? His numbers were based on GROSS ASSESSED VALUE instead of NET ASSESSED VALUE. The property tax going to the schools is based on NET ASSESSED VALUE, which is 70% less than the numbers people are writing on their red signs. Were they intentionally deceiving? I don’t personally think so in this particular case… just an ill informed opponent… and the tax chart they are distributing has since been corrected, but the original signs have not been replaced or removed from many yards I drive by.
Those of you who called the County Assessor’s Office and asked them to verify if your property tax was based on GROSS AV or NET AV… you better call them back and ask again. They were giving out the wrong information until recently. If you don’t believe me… call again for yourself and they will tell you the calculation is based on NET ASSESSED VALUE. Next time, call the Treasurer’s Office. The Assessor’s Office just assesses the value of land. The Treasurer’s Office figures the tax bills you get!
Issue 8
Well, people just won’t be able to sell their homes if the referendum is approved because of the inflated tax burden, right? That’s what Phil Ross says… and he was on the school board for 20 years… many years ago.
FACT - Property taxes in 2007 were much higher than today and much higher than what they would be after a YES VOTE for this referendum, yet Franklin Township was still the 4th fastest growing school district in the state of Indiana. You can’t convince me that the property tax cost after a YES VOTE for the referendum will result in deterring people from living in Franklin Township if the community chooses to support the schools. There was 46% growth between 2000 and 2007… and people just kept moving into the township with the purportedly high taxes FT has always had. The school system added 2,598 students in that time period. People live in Franklin Township for the quality of the community and the quality of the community is based on the quality of the schools. After all, Franklin Township has no city hall, no local government… it simply has the schools that serve as the hub of the community.
Issue 9
What the township certainly does NOT have is an abundance of commercial industry to help relieve the burden of the residential tax base.
Did you know a heavy equipment contractor wants to install a heavy equipment repair shop at the corner of Hickory and Southeastern that would add as many as 100 jobs in our community… and both our Civic League and the neighbors are opposing it? Can someone help me understand why? People scream about property taxes. They scream about the lack of commercial presence. They even blame the schools for creating such a burden. For years and years, they fought commercial entry into Franklin Township, which put this school system squarely in the mess it finds itself in today. There is no commercial tax base to alleviate or lessen the burden for the residential property tax payers of Franklin Township. And, still today, all these years later, in the midst of a huge property tax struggle to fund the schools… people are still fighting commercial entry into the township. Please tell me why? Please.
I guess the only way to possibly look at this would be to assume the residents of Franklin Township have made a conscious decision for all these years to pay a premium for the ability to live in an area absent of all of the negative impacts of commercial industry. But, now that premium is being questioned by members of the community. Now, people are discussing their willingness to foot that bill and take on that burden for our kids… while at the same time opposing a significant commercial opportunity yet again that could help the Franklin Township tax base. I guess I just don’t understand. I am willing to listen if someone will explain it.
Issue 10
The “Vote No” supporters are communicating that a median home value of $150,000 will pay $3,423 in taxes.
What they don’t tell you is that is the cost over 7 years… they conveniently leave that out to mislead you.
So, the FACT is a YES VOTE for the referendum will result in an increase of $489 a year… or $40.75 per month.
Now, to revisit a point made in a prior email… a parent who drives his or her child to and from school every day will reasonably use 1 to 2 gallons of gas for the transportation of that child. Lord help those of you with multiple kids at various schools in the township… you’ll be in the car 6 hours a day. J
If we can reasonably assume a fuel cost of $5.00 a day for round numbers, which will definitely be low for many and high for others (particularly in this climate where fuel costs today are $4.19 per gallon), then over 180 days of school there is a potential fuel cost to the parent of $900 for the school year. Last I checked, and I was educated by the finest math teachers Franklin Township has to offer… $900 is higher than $489.
Next, consider the parents who can’t afford to wait in 20 to 30 minute car rider lines every morning and afternoon. They might decide they need to pay the YMCA for before and after school day care. How much will that cost? Is it another $50 to $100 a month… or more? Please also consider the lost income of parents who have to take and pick up their kids every day? My point - for most families with kids in the schools, it is a cost savings for their household to VOTE YES. That’s not opinion… that’s a FACT.
While I am at it, I know there is a contingent of wealthy families who will just contemplate moving their kids to private schools. Let’s see… another several thousand to pay for the kid’s education… or Vote YES? To my way of thinking, it has the potential to cost the wealthy more if the referendum fails than if it passes.
Issue 11
Private School Parents… now it’s your turn. Go ahead and “Vote No”. Then, you can be part of the referendum failure and you get all of the families coming your way to your private schools… families who just want a better education for their kids. Here goes your protective bubble because with the good kids come some bad kids… some kids that take significant teaching resources because they just need a little more attention. Now, the exclusivity you pay dearly for each year isn’t quite as exclusive. Class sizes grow, but we all know your facilities aren’t going to grow that quickly. Welcome to the challenges Franklin Township has faced for years. TOO MANY KIDS… NOT ENOUGH CLASSROOMS AND NOT ENOUGH RESOURCES TO SERVICE ALL OF THE KIDS ADEQUATELY! So who suffers? Yes, your children do. This all happened because you didn’t want to pay another $41 a month in property taxes.
Enjoy the savings! I see your protective bubble bursting as I write this.
Issue 12
This is more of a public service announcement.
There is a “town hall” meeting at the Lifepoint Church on Combs Road Thursday night at 6:30. It is being sponsored by the “Senior Citizens for Franklin Township”, a Vote No group. Their announcement says, “arrive early, limited seating, no childcare provided”.
Well, let me be the first to express my shock at the “no childcare provided” disclaimer. These “Vote No” people don’t care about kids in this township. They care about are themselves! While the working parents of Franklin Township children fund social security and Medicare out of every pay check so these people can receive their health care and a monthly check… money I completely acknowledge they worked years to earn and reach retirement, but it is also money that our generation will never see in our lifetime because the system will be bankrupt by the time most of us are old enough to receive benefits… we fund these things without objection week after week. Yet, there is obviously a segment of the Senior Citizen population in Franklin Township who sees it as their obligation to focus solely on themselves and take away the educational opportunities currently available to the kids of Franklin Township. (Don’t play the fixed income card… I just told you in Issue #6 that their taxes will be LESS THAN any they have paid to date.)
As I said in a previous message, you would think these would be the people who would value education and want to provide better opportunities for their children and grandchildren. I just don’t understand it. What great role models you are “Senior Citizens for Franklin Township”! I hope our kids grow up to be productive citizens in spite of your lousy example. And, to those of you senior citizens who plan to VOTE YES, especially those of you without children or grandchildren in the schools, THANK YOU for your investment in the children of Franklin Township. I know the kids will appreciate your sacrifice, even if they don’t acknowledge it for another 20 years!
Issue 13
Why was the original increase in the first failed referendum at .33 per $100 of assessed value and this request is .75 per hundred of assessed value?
FACT - The original projections for the property tax cap impacts were INDIANA STATE Government estimates provided by the Legislative Services Agency (LSA). In 2009, using trend data they had available at that time, the LSA estimated or forecasted a loss of $2,600,000 in property tax revenue for Franklin Township as a result of the implementation of the 1% property tax caps.
Then, a funny thing happened… and this is FACT… as the government drilled down the analysis to the county level and further to the local level over the course of the last 2 years… the ACTUAL revenue lost as a result of the tax caps grew exponentially to become $9,700,000 for 2011. In other words, the LSA so badly underestimated the impact of property tax caps that the original referendum request would have been insufficient.
So, those of you open-minded, reasonable people who want an honest explanation as to how FTCSC went from a need of $3,000,000 to $13,000,000… there’s your answer.
Issue 14
What happens when the $100,000,000 to $110,000,000 gets distributed across the state to school systems as a result of the increases in funding planned by Governor Daniels after addressing full day kindergarten. What will FTCSC do with that money?
I know this is redundant, but if the referendum result is a YES VOTE, the FACT is these funds will be used by the school system and the levy to the community will no longer have to be .75 per $100 in assessed value, but some lower number because the school will only seek from the taxpayers what it needs to maintain current operations. It will not seek to expand its empire in any way. Even the recently instituted “pay for play” is not going away if the school system gets additional funding.
One other key piece of information to keep in mind… again a reminder… Our state cut education funding by $450 million in recent years and more of that funding is bound to be reintroduced into the schools in the coming years as our state enters a recovery phase. The goal is simply to allow the schools to stay open and maintain services. All other dollars will be applied to reducing the taxpayer levy. Wouldn’t it be great if the state restored the $2.5 million they took away each of the last two years?
Issue 15
Well, what happens if the school system wins its lawsuit against the state of Indiana for unfair funding per student?
FACT – any additional money gained to reimburse the school system for the years of inadequate funding will only be used to reduce the levy for the community.
Issue 16
What if the school system played the lottery and won a billion dollars? They would just waste the money and keep jacking up taxes, wouldn’t they?
No, in FACT, they would reduce the levy on the tax payers and only seek to maintain current services. Okay, I made this one up as a joke to exaggerate… but how many ways do you have to be told that the only goal of the school system is to maintain current services? This means keeping schools open, keeping teachers in classrooms, and keeping programs in place – including art, music and PE.
Issue 17… THIS IS A BIG ONE!
A lot of misinformation is being circulated regarding Dr. Bourke’s compensation package as Superintendent of Franklin Township Schools, as well as administrative compensation in general. Here are some of the questions, comments and other general nonsense I have been sent regarding compensation.
COMMENT: The cost to employ Dr. Bourke went up 25k from 2009 to 2010… they are hiding his compensation… Franklin Township administrative compensation has increased between 6% and 8% (2 year average for past two years)… The school district claims that senior administrators took a pay cut or freeze, which is FALSE information… From 2009 to 2010, Dr. Bourke's total compensation package increased by 16.5% from $205,556 to $239,449… Note: His salary dropped by $10,000, but he was given a $10,000 tax deferred annuity. Did you get a $10,000 deferred Annuity this year?... If the district claims to have frozen administrative salaries in 2011, did they give themselves extraordinary raises in 2010 (12.2% to 16.5%) in anticipation of this referendum?
Okay, that’s a boatload of ignorance to address, but here are the FACTS for those who care to deal in FACTS.
Superintendent’s Contract
2006 – 2021
Dr. Bourke’s original three year contract began in July of 2006. The base salary was $150,000 per year. He also received $8,000 per year as a transportation allowance. The allowance compensated him for the regular use of his vehicle and fuel for conducting school district business without filing a monthly travel voucher. He also at the time of his hiring received an annual annuity payment upon the completion of each year of his contract. The annuity payment was originally $15,000 and increased by $5,000 each of the next two years. In 2009, the annuity was $25,000. In the original contract, he also received health insurance payments in the amount of $19,180 per year. Lastly, he received all of the additional retirement benefits and contributions afforded all other administrators. In 2009, the total cost of his employment was $216,151. In 2010, the insurance coverage for all administrators was reduced by $2,089. In 2010, the total cost of his employment was $213,999.53. Again, employing my outstanding math skills learned at Franklin Central High School, this seems to be a decrease in compensation and not the 16.5% increase the “Vote No” folks embellished.
In November of 2010, he signed a revised contract. The revised contract reduced his base salary to $140,000 per year – a $10,000 per year reduction. It also provided for additional increases to his annual annuity payment of $2,000 EVERY OTHER YEAR. If he were to remain at FTCSC for another 10 years, the reductions in his salary and benefits from the original 2006 contract will total $71,168.
Further FACT… I was on the board at the time of Dr. Bourke’s hiring. I was personally involved in the hiring of the Superintendent and negotiation of the original contract. I personally did research on the compensation plan of every Superintendent in Marion County, as well as the larger school districts in each of the counties surrounding Marion. Any of you can feel free to investigate Superintendent compensation plans at that time - or even in the current year for that matter. You will NOT find a less compensated Superintendent in any of the surrounding school systems and that is a FACT. I think we did a great job for the tax payers in 2006. I think it remains a very good deal for the taxpayers today.
Now, I recognize some of you are jealous of the amount of money he makes and will immediately say he doesn’t deserve that much. He runs a major multi-million dollar corporation and is compensated less than his peers with similar districts and responsibilities. Actually, he makes less than peers in smaller districts. Get over yourselves!
Now, for a little more of my own opinion and a bit of emotion… why don’t you people be thankful that the man willingly offered to cut his own pay by $10,000? And for the “Vote No” people inaccurately sharing this compensation information with the public, get your facts straight!
By the way, I know darn well many of you wouldn’t offer to give up $71,168 in compensation potential as Dr. Bourke has. Do you know how I know that? I know it because you won’t even vote for a tax referendum to benefit the children of your community and that will be a cost that is less than $41 a month for most of you.
For those who are still reading this far and questioning the validity of what I am telling you, if you want the compensation table of Bourke’s actual income, email me and I will send a copy.
Issue 18
Now, let’s talk about the FACTS associated with administration. First of all, it is a FACT that the Franklin Township administrative costs rank 335 out of 349 school districts in the state. Yes, that is in the 97th percentile of the lowest cost administrative staff in the entire state.
It is also a FACT that the total compensation to all administrative staff (including principals and assistant principals in all of our schools) totaled $4,475,748.64 in 2009-10 school year.
In 2010-11, that administrative number dropped to $3,968,220.43. That is a FACT!
The “Vote No” people would tell you that their compensation increased.
Will someone please remind Dr. Will and his “Vote No” friends that appropriations are not the same thing as actual costs?
Any other past graduates of Franklin Central High School want to take a stab at whether this constitutes an increase in compensation or a decrease in compensation for the administrators? The “Vote No” people think this is some kind of super secret, hidden, paranoid increase in compensation from their emails, but I seem to see a savings of over $475,000.
Again, I have the compensation table that validates all of this information in my possession.
Issue 19
Well, surely the recent concessions by the teachers are just some last minute gimmick, right? I mean, who would give up a bunch of benefits 3 weeks before an election? And the first question of the “Vote No” crew is, “Where is the taxpayer relief from these concessions?”
FACT – In recent negotiations between the FTCSC Administration and the Teachers Union, the teachers stepped up… just like the Superintendent and the Administrative staff members already had… and they agreed to pay freezes that will save the district $489,000, as well as agreeing to pay a greater portion of the benefits package that will result in additional savings of $1,200,000 per year.
FACT – the “Vote No” people need to quit assuming the worst and simply ask the same question as shown above in ISSUES #14, 15 and 16. If there is a YES VOTE for the referendum next week, will this savings be passed back to the taxpayers in the form of a reduced levy? The answer is the same as before… YES it will. Again, the goal of the school corporation is simply to maintain the current level of services for its students. Does that sound like a broken record? YES.
Issue 20
Is there a real life example of a school system that has passed a referendum and then come across unexpected funding?
YES, it is a FACT that Speedway schools recently passed a referendum and then had unexpected funds available that improved their financial position and they were able to lessen the need of taxpayer dollars and reduced the levy accordingly.
Issue 21
It has been suggested by the “Vote No” supporters that everyone just vote against this request and that will create chaos at the state level - so they will have to address the problem, then we can just come back next year and ask for another referendum to be voted on.
Okay, I am jumping straight to sarcasm on this one.
How ignorant is this approach? The Franklin Township community voted down the last referendum. Does anyone think those 81 teachers will just be sitting there waiting to be brought back? Maybe those that support this approach will run over and turn the dang lights back on at Acton, Wanamaker and FTMS West when we are ready in 2012-2013. While they are at it, they can go ahead and reintroduce the art, music and PE curriculums at the elementary levels. If they have a little extra time, they can start up all the buses they parked at the transportation center while the parents drive their kids back and forth twice a day for a school year. After all, what’s the big deal there? Oh, we had to eliminate the transportation department… I hope these wonderful community volunteers who just want what is best know how to recreate bus routes because the school system won’t have anyone to do it. Give me a break.
I have a better idea. Pass the referendum on May 3rd and we can still all go to the state house and raise heck… but our kids won’t be hurt in the meantime.
Does anyone realize who suffers the most in this process? FACT – It is the kids who suffer.
Yes, the kids.
The adults in this community are supposed to serve as the voice for these kids and look out for their best interests. Try to remember that.
Issue 22
FACT - Over 400 kids marched through Wanamaker this past weekend in an effort to wake you adults up and let you know they care about their schools and want your support.
Issue 23
People in Wanamaker and Acton, you do realize your schools are closing for sure if this doesn’t pass, correct? People with kids at FTMS West understand that as well, correct? You middle school parents realize you will be driving your kids to and from school and then also to FTMS West for athletic activities because that is still where many of the sports will take place since they have facilities over there to house these events?
Parents of Orchestra and Choir Students at Franklin Central High School, you do realize you will lose your directors and in some cases your programs if this referendum doesn’t pass, correct?
All parents, you do realize you lose bus transportation for your kids, correct?
Elementary parents, you do understand no more PE, Art, Music or Library for your kids if this referendum doesn’t pass, correct?
Issue 24
Brett Martin, Certified Indiana Residential Appraiser, shared an analysis on April 6, 2011 that can be found at:
His professional assessment is that a failed referendum will result in a majority of the family sized properties becoming much less attractive than communities such as Hamilton Southeastern and Carmel where those communities supported a school referendum and to make up for the shortfall attributed to the 1% tax caps.
Further, he sees a significant decline in the median home prices from the present values. He expects a continued decline over time ultimately reaching a level of stagnation as market participants leave for competing communities that passed their referendums which ultimately made their communities more desirable.
Issue 25
Dr. Will chose to refer to a report reflecting expenditure per student in an email sent out from the “Vote No” group. First of all, his reporting is based on all of the school funds being added together… general fund, debt service, transportation, capital projects fund, etc. and then dividing these totals by the number of pupils. That is of little relevance at all, but since all this does is reinforce my point that Franklin Township gets insufficient funding, I will share the information with you.
FACT – Franklin Township receives the 3rd lowest funding per pupil in Marion County… and we only trail the smaller school systems of Speedway and Beech Grove. So, what case is he trying to make?
2010 MARION COUNTY TOTAL EXPENDITURES PER PUPIL
Franklin Township 10,800
Beech Grove 10,700
Decatur Township 11,700
Indianapolis Public Schools 14,800
Lawrence Township 13,400
Perry Township 11,000
Pike Township 12,800
Speedway 9,800
Warren Township 11,300
Washington Township 10,800
Wayne Township 12,700
*3rd Lowest in Marion County
Issue 26
Here is a list of actions taken by the school system in recent years to cut costs. Does this look like a school system milking the taxpayer dollars? The schools don’t even have evening janitors any longer and have to charge the local youth sports leagues for the use of facilities… not by choice, but because the funds aren’t there to subsidize the activities. Take a look at the list.
SUMMARY OF FTCSC EXPENDITURE REDUCTIONS
· 2006-2010 - 36% Central Administrator Salaries – Administrator salaries as a percent of operational expenses 7.1% (335 of 349 school systems in the state of Indiana)
· July 2010 - reduced 40 certified staff positions including 17 teacher RIF’s
· Pay-to-Participate for all sports and extra-curricular activities
· Administrator salary reduced by $2,089 per administrator for health insurance
· Holidays eliminated for less than 12 month classified employees
· July 2010 - reduced 29 custodial/maintenance positions (30%)
· Reduced transportation costs for 2010 by projected $1.0+ Million
· 2011 Teacher salary increments and health insurance costs reduced by
$1.7 Million
Issue 27
The schools have cut spending by 16.1% in the last two years when comparing 1st quarter numbers.
QUARTER 1 EXPENDITURES (FTCSC) CHANGES
2009 $15,165,803
2010 $14,104,571 ($1,061,232) (7.0%)
2011 $12,724,593 ($1,379,978) (9.1%)
($2,441,210) (16.1%)
Issue 28
Let me give you a little feel for the types of sacrifices that will be made when you gut programs in our schools.
Here’s a video I would love for each of you to watch, particularly you “Vote No” people if you are still reading.
Listen to the words – all of the words. They are so appropriate from the beginning to the end… I’ll let our FC Singers Show Choir tell you themselves what they think of the decisions to Vote No to the referendum.
How can you possibly take a program like this away from these talented high school kids? How can you take music and the arts away from elementary children that lay the groundwork for high school kids like this to pursue their dreams?
Issue 29
There is a total of $308,484,544.00 in debt service at this time. This is based on all the construction of our schools over the last several years, all of which is a direct result of all of the growth our township has experienced. If I projected an overly critical 5 million dollars of waste over the years, that is still less than 2% of the total “current” debt service… so understanding that we have paid down some of the debt annually, in reality it is fair to say that in my opinion we have had less than 2% waste. Now, you may choose not to believe that, but given what I know from having been there and involved in the details, this is my assessment. In my business, I would kill to experience only 2% waste. All in all, I think Franklin Township has been a very good steward of the tax dollars.
Take into account that our total assessed valuation for Franklin Township is currently $1,715,166,186.00 and a challenge emerges. The 1% property tax cap presented by Mitch Daniels and passed by the State of Indiana has reduced the amount of dollars the school system has available to pay the debt service for all of our growth. The assessed valuation number is 50% of what it was and this is what is killing Franklin Township schools. The fact is without this referendum there will be no dollars left to pay for bus transportation after we pay the annual portion of the debt service on the $308 million described above. To cut through all of the numbers, this is the source of Franklin Township losing $9.7 million dollars in funding annually because of the 1% tax cap in the CAPITAL PROJECTS FUND, which facilitates buildings and funds the debt, etc. The loss of that $9.7 million annually means we barely have enough dollars to pay our interest on debt service from the buildings we needed… and that fund is also supposed to cover the utility bills for the school buildings. Oh, by the way, the law says we have to provide transportation for some types of students (IE – Special needs, etc.). So, since we have no money left in that fund, now we will be paying for that transportation out of our GENERAL FUND, which is already 3.1 million underfunded, because we won’t get enough money to have a transportation fund. Are you getting the idea yet?
So, when someone tells you it is a dirty trick for the schools to cut bus transportation and they cannot do that… the reality is they will HAVE TO (except for the state required transportation)… not because they choose to but because they will have no money to fund it.
Finally… Issue 30
How many of you can show me a business that loses “30%” of its revenue and is expected to keep its doors open without a glitch in service? That is what is expected of the Franklin Township School Corporation. They have lost 30% of their funding after experiencing incredible growth for a very long period of time and now must keep their doors open… while their product (the students) are not allowed to suffer in terms of the level of service they receive per the direction of the shareholders (the taxpayers and caring parents of students).
This is just not possible. So, if the taxpayers choose not to help, the kids will suffer greatly.
Or, the taxpayers can speak for the kids, VOTE YES, and do the right thing.
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It is a difficult issue. I sincerely understand this. There are no easy answers.
Just evaluate the information and do what you think is right!
