School superintendent pay raises

Don't know that I agree completely with the intent of this bill; however, it could be used to send a message to school boards who fail to properly adhere to the wishes of the taxpayers. I certainly understand the frustrations of taxpayers with regards to school administrator pay. Sponser of HB 3312 Representative Stefani Carter (R-Dallas) stated “I also have a real problem when the chiefs of staff for the superintendents of some of our largest school districts, as in Dallas ISD, are making more money than the chief of staff for the President of the United States. We need to cut back in administration or our teachers and children will suffer.” "Carter also noted that this month the Duncanville school board voted to raise superintendent base salary from $197,415 to $230,000 a year, even though the state’s substantial shortfall will likely leave the Duncanville Independent School District with a $6 million shortfall for the 2011 – 2012 school year." Grant a pay raise and the school district has not come to a decission with regards to the number of teachers to be laid-off. Only by a school board in Texas. The pay raise appears to cover the salary for at least one teacher. I do believe a school could run without a superintendent; however, without teachers is another matter.

House Bill 3312 would require any proposed salary increase for superintendents to be placed on the ballot of the regular election of trustees for approval by a majority of the voters in that district.

Representative Carter also introduced House Bill 3625 which would create a task force to review and analyze how public school districts may be made more efficient through reorganization and consolidation. Bring it on with regards to consolidation. There will be heavy opposition to this bill from many fronts. However, it is times public schools in Texas reorganized. This includes elimination of region service centers which is a place for retired school superintendents to hang out and draw additional pay checks at taxpayers expense. Region Service Centers were needed in the old model of operation; however, the new model of on-line content reduces their capacity to serve efficiently.

FINANCIAL ARMAGEDDON we do not need.

Bringing 3-D reality to the screen

Amount Massachusetts has allocated since 2000 to decrease class size and increase teacher pay: $1,200,000,000

"Historical illiteracy is a threat to the health of the republic. Our ignorance of the key events and basic concepts of the nation's development is a matter of statistical fact, and despite years of warnings we continue to show little interest in how the past determines contemporary choices."

Spend, Spend, Spend........ was not one of the key events nor one of the basic concepts with regards to our nation's nor state's development. School districts in this state are now faced with bringing the excess of 3-D spending over the past many years to a reality. The lavish life-style must now be scaled back to conform to reality.

Over the past several weeks there have been a number of quotes from various individuals working to protect the rights of school districts to spend, spend, and spend your money. They say the evil taxpayer is working to put school districts out of business and put people out of a job. Not the case - for the taxpayer knows that this will do more harm than good. However, the taxpayer does want accountability and reality considered in every spending decision.

"We say to businesses all over the state, 'Come to Texas but leave your kids because we don't want to fund them?'" Frisco ISD board member Richard Beaver wins Bone Head award for this quoted statement in the Dallas Morning News a few weeks back. Evidently Mr. Beaver fails to comprehend that if a business is already in Texas they don't need to relocate to Texas, and their children are already here and the associated funds are being spent on their education.

"We need a dedicated statewide resource to fund public education......". This quote comes to you from John Fullinwider a parent of a student in the Dallas ISD. Mr. Fullinwider is also a teacher in the DISD system. Someone should check his credentials......Texas has a dedicated statewide resource that is supplemented by local property taxes. It is true the state has cut back on their percentage; however, the burden shifted to local property owners has broken their backs and they have closed their pocketbooks due to excess spending on sports complexes, indoor golf training facilities, F-350 King Ranch transportation for transportation directors, etc. School officials call these items prudent spending in tough times.

Mr. Fullinwider goes on to say "Let this designated state resource pay for the entire foundational school program of all school districts." This came real close to winning the Bone Head award. The state already funds the basics of an "entire foundational school program for all school districts." Bringing 3-D to reality and understand that some school districts have more property values than others. Having higher property values allows a district to provide beyond the foundational. Here lies the problem and the reason Mr. Fullinwider did not win the Bone Head Award for educational stupidity. Mr. Fullinwider has suggested a policy debate about what goes into the basic foundational school program. Should the expense of a charter bus to an athletic contest be a part of the basic foundational school program? These are the types of spending issues that school officials need to debate. Bringing 3-D to reality!

For every teacher employed by a school district in this state there is likely one additional staff person on the payroll as well. Are all these staff people really needed? Bringing 3-D to reality!

The OECD recently presented data at a conference for governors that shows nations with powerhouse schools put a greater premium on quality teachers rather than smaller classes. It was also noted that nations with strong school systems attract, select and develop excellent teachers. This sure sounds a lot like the way things operate in the world of real business. Recruit, select and develop to create excellence. Are we asking schools in Texas to become Fortune 500 companies? You can't qualify for the list, but you can follow the examples and learn from how the Fortune 500 operate. You want to know how to run an efficient school? Mentor with any struggling small business owner. Bringing 3-D to reality!

Schools are not going away - just need to restructure. Many a company has taken on bankruptcy in order to restructure and come back to life. Over the past two years there have been several examples, i.e. General Motors, Six Flags, Pilgrim's Pride, etc. All these and many more have managed a come back.

3-D to reality!

If the need should arise

I was traveling the back roads of the fine state of Arkansas a few days ago. While there I stopped for a visit with some relatives of which I have not seen in a few years. It was a rural community and my cousin took me for breakfast early and I got to meet the locals who gathered at a round table and drink coffee. For a bit felt kinda like at the other round tables I visit from time to time.

The topic of government spending came up and it appears this local community is in the same financial shape as most governmental entities these days. The community is running short on revenue. The solution per the consensus of the table is do like everyone else and cut the expenses. "Quit trying to dig into my pocket" was the comment by one local. Then as I continued to set and listen another local entered the doors and grabbed a cup of coffee and he proceeded to fill the other cups full around the table. He piped right in on the conversation and gave his two bits worth, and it went something like this (wished I had a tape recorder that day):

"Don't need no law enforcement - well equipped to handle such matters if the need should arise.
Don't need no highways, roads, subsidized transportation, etc. - got two feet to meet the need if it should arise. Don't need no parks and recreation facilities - go the woods if the need should arise. Don't need no welfare programs - grow my own if the need should arise. Don't need no public education system - educate my own if the need should arise. Don't need no government programs - create my own if the need should arise. Don't need no military - militia will form if the need should arise. Don't need no judicial system - can judge if the need should arise. Matter of fact if the need should arise I can probably handle most anything if the need should arise."

It is a little crude; however, there is some truth in the simpleness of the message. As always each has to come to his or her own conclusions. Probably would not go poking around the gentleman's vegetable garden.

Broke, Busted and Fed Up

8.25% Sales Tax
3.7% Property Tax
12% Fuel Tax
26% Income Tax
1% Franchise Tax (Yes, you pay for it in the higher costs associated with purchased items)
9-15% Sin Tax
10% Insurance Tax
???
???
???

While attending a coffee shop round table last week in a neighboring community I learn that according to a recent report on CNBC a popular business network reported that 51% of those working are now working for YOU the taxpayers. 51% of those currently on payrolls now work for a governmental entity in the United States (calculating correctly that only leaves 49% of those employed working for private industry). One can see with all the taxes listed above taxpayers have no more money to pay the governmental payrolls. Taxpayers need to lay-off workers so they can feed their families, pay their mortgages, etc. Taxpayers don't like the lay-offs anymore than the government employee; however, we can't afford to keep you on OUR payroll.

"There is not sufficient return on the taxpayers investment for all the not so intelligent decisions (the choice of words was more colorful) made by our employees, so in the best interest of all the doors should be closed. Governmental entities have achieved their desired goal of making us all equals in that no one earns an income and we all struggle to survive. The only folks getting rich today are the ones being paid by the government to work and not work."

"I'll bet I am a better survivor than they for I know hard work. Noting came easy and I worked hard for everything they made me give up. If I catch'um in my vegetable garden helping themselves to my veggies cause their hungry and don't know how to work then they need to be prepared to receive salted buckshot in their 'hind end'. Even with us both broke and down-n-out I will still have more, because I know how to work hard to earn it. Don't let me catch'um sneaking around in my garden patch cause these ain't the good old days of yesteryear."

The quote was from a not to happy local round table participant. Don't know who 'they' is, but if I were on a payroll of a governmental entity I would not be sneaking around in any of the local garden patches. Salted buckshot has got to stinggggggggggg!

Stuck-pig squeals

Economic recession has eroded tax bases, leading to under-funding and historic deficits. Listen carefully and you hear a key word over and over - 'discretionary.' Discretionary spending it the part of any budget that can be negotiated. Why should budgets be negotiated? Start at zero every year and there is nothing to negotiate. Give instructions to spend the money as they would their own, then again this has proven to be a bad idea. After all our current recessionary state is due to folks spending what they did not have.

After generations of spending nonexistent money, individuals and governmental entities from coast to coast are facing financial truths. Many lacked the necessary financial skills thus the current situation. Rampant spending has hurled us all into debating the financial crisis that should have never existed if spending had been controlled at all levels. Governments got use to spending what they did not have. Several school districts in this state floated bond elections that paid for items like uniforms, electronic devices, books, maps, band instruments, etc. The bond election became the 'credit card' for a number of school districts in this state. The life of most of these items will be exhausted by the time the bond is paid off. Exactly like a consumer 'credit card'.

After all this spending taxpayers have finally said enough! However, modest budget-cutting suggestions are condemned by those who have grown used to government bloated. The public school lobby is a live and well walking the halls of the state house in Austin. You hear the stuck-pig squeals of the public schools of this state who have no intention of weaning themselves from taxpayer-funded largess. Budget cutting discussions in Wisconsin had teachers abandoning kids and classrooms to swirl in anger at the Wisconsin statehouse. Caused sympathetic doctors to write phony medical excuses for the teachers so they would not be in violation of their collective bargaining agreements with regards to their absences from the classroom.

Permanently reshaping the financial landscape in taxpayers favor is something that has to happen if we wish a more vibrant future.

Paying for the sins of government leadership

Inept is term that comes to mind when listening to the issues in Wisconsin. What fools would give collective bargaining rights to public employees?

In 1906 and 1907 a report was conducted in Boston that detailed mismanagement in the city's government. The report is just as true today and applies not just to Wisconsin, but other governmental entities as well.

The report blamed the mayor and alderman (one could fill-in the blank with school board, commissioner's court, etc.) who, the report said, "appointed department heads who lacked technical qualifications, and employees, therefore, had no incentive to perform efficiently themselves." This appears to be the case in most governmental entities since they adhere to the 'good ole boy' code of employment and promotion. In the case of Wisconsin the bad teachers get to stay on board due to a clause in their collective bargaining agreement that prevents one from being dismissed from their job for in ability to perform.

Things really come to light when governmental entities (Texas school districts) have deficits, have exercised poor judgment with regards to financial investments and financial budgeting, and have unfunded pension liabilities. Lack of funds to pay for public sector pensions is becoming a lighting rod for angry taxpayers suspicious or mistrusting of government, their employees and union representatives.

Why are taxpayers so angry? First, pension deficits can be huge and significantly add to a budget deficit. Second, the decisions to challenge pension payments often involve public safety employees and teachers (taxpayers hate coming out against these groups of employees in most cases for they know the value of the service provided). Third, the most divisive, few retiring from private sector employment have a defined benefit pension like the public sector and are wondering why they have to pay for someone else's retirement. Most private sector employees have to pay for their own retirements.

In the 'old' days a good retirement plan offset lower wage paying jobs. However, in this day and age the low wage paying jobs in the public sector pay more than the wage paying jobs of the private sector. To help understand the retirement discontent by taxpayers perhaps a dollar and cents comparison is in order: average government worker is promised $2.85 per hour worked from his or her retirement plan, while the average private sector worker with a pension receives only $0.41 per hour worked. Public workers in Wisconsin have a sweet deal. Most of them put less than 1% of their pay into their pensions and 6% of the cost of health insurance premimums. Who is going to be on the lake fishing while enjoying retirement? Thus the disconnect and the discontent on behalf of taxpayers. Then you get a scenario like in Wisconsin and it all comes to light and taxpayers really get 'heart burn'. Especially when they realize there is a $2.44 difference in retirement benefit pay. Pension warfare is alive and well and politicians will be forced to deal with the issue now that taxpayers have taken their heads out of the sand.

In another report about public sector employment it was stated "many seem to be employed in the public sector because they were not strong leaders and do not have the leadership skills to make it into similar positions with private companies." The report was not addressing the public sector employees as individuals without necessary skills, merely pointing out the possible fact existed that governmental entities don't have the most capable individuals employed. The report might be on to something. Private industry seems to have more capability to solve problems with limited resources than public entities with the same available resources. One would think by now issues regarding education, public safety, etc. would be solved.

Public v. Private is a great debate.........

Earned Income Tax Credit

For years I have been hearing about this class shifting government program, so the other day when I was having my tax forms filled out at one of the local tax prep operations I decided to ask some questions about the EIC.

First question I asked of the tax prep individual is why the EIC box was not checked off on my form, and the answer "You do not qualify". Fair enough answer, but I wanted to know why I did not qualify. So I ask why do I not qualify? "You are retired". I then asked what if I am unemployed? "You might qualify if you had earned income". What is earned income? Received no real answer, so I hit the IRS website in search of an answer. Real winner here for I am more confused as to what earned income is now than before.

Any how the Earned Income Tax Credit program was first floated by the Nixon administration. Ronald Reagan dubbed it "the best pro-family, the best job creation measure to come out of Congress." Mind you both of these guys were from the conservative party known as Republican.

EIC is nothing more than a program to transfer wealth in this country. A bridge between the have and have nots one might say. In 2007, the U.S. Treasury paid out $49 billion to 25 million taxpayers. I dug deeper into what might happen with one who files a tax form for 2010 and this will be a possible result:

A single mother of two making $16,000 a year gets a $5,000 tax refund; if she earns $25,000 her windfall is $3,200. In either case it is a flat out gift to her from other taxpayers who earned higher wages. Absolutely a transfer of wealth program. Along with the additional benefits available to qualify for and most likely received I am poorer than she in the end.

Anyone need to put a retired person on their payroll? Guess I need to make $1.00 to qualify for EIC.

Robust and complacent thinking

The robust economy of the 90s and early 2000s provided no incentive for efficiency and cost savings in the maintenance of our governmental entities. As things 'hummered' along the tax money rolled into the vaults as fast as it could be collected. Once in the vault it was used to create niche projects, programs, etc. rather than address the issues related to maintenance of what was already up and running.

Without any regard for the fact that one day things may not be as robust Texas schools and governmental entities felt comfortable with their customary ways and lacked motivation to think outside the box and demand more for less. The good times brought with them a less-than-disciplined and less-than-efficient approach to asset and financial management. It's like these folks thought the funds would always be in the vault and the vault would continue to fill.

The robust days of past are gone and no one knows for sure when and if they will return. Time for all these governmental entities and schools to learn from a key lesson of the Great Depression - do more with less. The individuals who pay the taxes to keep your doors open have had their world turned upside down, and now it is time for your world to experience the same. After all it is only fair since you only exist at the expense of taxpayers.

In a recent editorial in the local rag by One Man's Opinion it appears as if the writer feels he is receiving a good return on his tax dollars with regards to education spending. It is the writers right to have such an opinion; however, one would be willing to bet that One Man has been in the workforce for a while and he has not worked along side a high school ONLY graduate in some time. Then again perhaps he has been given an opportunity to work along side one of the exceptional and this could cloud one's opinion of the system as a whole.

Several polls have been published and it depends upon which you encounter; however, the one most striking at a dinner conversation the other night while in Seattle was regarding a poll that stated only 30% of high school graduates were college ready. Wished I had asked what organization was responsible for the poll for this writer has seen polls that show college readiness ranging from 40% to 60%. Most if not all know that polling is a manageable exercise to achieve whatever end result one may desire.

Before you buy off and take sides on the budget cut debates perhaps one should consider the complacent thinking theory. Individuals became complacent in their thinking with regards to their individual budgets when things were robust. The powers that be have informed us that this is one of the main reasons for our economic downfall. Individuals lived on credit and the bills came due and many could not pay. Stimulus funds equalled credit extended to schools and governmental entities and two years later the bills have come due.

Robust has a tendency to make one complacent - it is historical.

Budget cuts - Questions

Who should take care of people in need? Should it be the 'the government,' or charitable organizations, or 'the neighborhood'?

And if these entities decline to accept the obligations you have defined for them, what then?

More stimulus trivia

Of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act two years ago, approximately $100 billion went to schools. Folks that is $100 BILLION, and not one school can show much of a return on the federal dollars invested on education under the act. Anyone ever hear the term 'black hole'? Public schools are a 'black hole'.

The Texas Education Agency has conducted random audits of the funds received by local districts and has determined that most of the funds were not misused. Kind of hard to misuse funds when they had no real targets to hit in the first place. In 2009 one school district in Texas apparently hired 290 additional employees with stimulus funds. It is now 2011 and the same school district recently approved a reduction in force plan of 290 employees. This particular school district in 2009 received $105 million of the $100 billion of stimulus funds.

Texas received $6.42 billion in stimulus funds. It appears that a great deal of the stimulus funds received by Texas was used for educator in-service training opportunities at some really nice resorts.



We wonder why teacher lay-offs are a possibility.

Public v. Private and SOB stories

This was forwarded to me recently and I found it interesting. Individuals have to come to their own conclusions with regards to the public v. private issue. I like the way whoever wrote the piece emphasis "MAY POSSIBLY" for at this point no one really knows what the outcomes will truly be. I am willing to bet it may not be as bad as most are predicting with regards to state funding. Notice I stated state funding for the federal government funding that schools have come to depend is a whole separate matter.

"Our GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS have been giving us non-stop ... SOB STORIES ... about their ... IMMINENT BUDGET CUTS ... . I thought they were administered by Professionals who got the BIG BUCKS to make the tough decisions ... ???

EVERY DAY the public is told:
(1) How many Government School teachers ... "MAY POSSIBLY" ... get laid-off and
(2) How many Government school buildings ... "MAY POSSIBLY" ... be closed and
(3) How many Government School students ... "MAY POSSIBLY" ... be ruined for life ... .

PLEASE compare this CRY BABY BEHAVIOR with the HEROIC BEHAVIOR of our PRIVATE SCHOOL employees ... . I have NOT heard one SOB STORY from our Private School employees, and they are living in the same depressed economy."

State Senator Kevin Eltife needs to hear from you

Our State Senator, Kevin Eltife (R-Tyler), told the Houston Chronicle last week that it is "crazy" to expect lawmakers to balance the budget with spending cuts.

Must be a lot of crazy people in Texas: a new poll says voters by a margin of 2-to-1 expect the budget to be balanced with spending cuts.

Are you one of them? Maybe you want to call Sen. Eltife with your thoughts: (512) 463-0101.

But before you call, what your state senator wants to do gets even worse. Sen. Eltife went on to tell the Chronicle that not only should the state raid the rainy day fund -- something Gov. Rick Perry and other responsible leaders have said shouldn't be on the table -- but he also is advocating for "more revenue" flowing into the treasury. That can only mean he wants to find new ways into your wallet.

No wonder Kevin Eltife has refused to sign the Taxpayer Protection Pledge.

As Andrew Kerr reminds us, though, Sen. Eltife is used to calling people "crazy" and "insane" when they are actually being fiscally responsible. Two years ago it was Sen. Eltife who wanted the state to accept heavily stringed unemployment insurance funds from President Obama as part of the stimulus. Republican leaders rejected those efforts. Apparently Sen. Eltife is only hearing from people who want to spend the taxes -- not pay them.

He needs to hear from the two-thirds of Texans who want sensible budget policy: a balanced budget through cuts, not new taxes. You can reach Sen. Eltife's office at (512) 463-0101.

For Texas,
Michael Quinn Sullivan