OCSBA members will discuss their
legislative priorities for 2009
at our January 7th meeting at BOCES.
Please come prepared to talk about how our schools
can contain costs through mandate relief.
OCSBA
2008 Legislative Platform
The purpose of
this
platform is to educate our
legislators and school board members
about the
effects of pending or existing legislation upon the children in our schools.
STATE ISSUES
The State must provide adequate funding for public
education.
Last year’s multi-year financial commitment
must be met.
* * *
To address the strong public outcry about
financing education in NYS,
our legislators must fix the funding mechanism
for our schools.
* * *
We are very concerned
about a proposed cap on local property tax increases
without a commensurate cap on costs beyond local
control,
such as, energy, health insurance, transportation, and
pension payments.
* * *
Adequate funding must accompany all NYS
mandates.
* * *
Funding must be
adequate, equitable, timely, flexible,
predictable, and clear for all schools.
* * *
As definitions for handicapping conditions
expand, the numbers of classified students
increase adding financial costs to our schools.
* * *
BOCES is the most
effective and efficient structure we have
to address our needs on a regional basis.
We urge you to remove
the barriers that may impede the best and brightest leaders
from pursuing the position of District
Superintendent.
We urge you
to remove the District Superintendent’s salary cap.
FEDERAL ISSUES
Because we believe our schools are governed best when
governed locally,
we are concerned about the federal
government’s encroaching role in our local school
districts.
* * *
While our schools
welcome measures of accountability, we have concerns about
the No Child Left Behind Act’s approach that penalizes schools
with under-performing student subgroups.
Rather, we support additional help
for these schools.
* * *
We have experienced
grossly underfunded mandates from federal legislation.
Public Law 94-142 (IDEA) promised 40% funding
by its fourth year.
This law is approaching its third decade, and
our school districts
receive an average of only 8 - 18% funding
reimbursement.
* * *
NCLB is another
underfunded federal mandate.
Our schools have been forced to raise local
tax dollars to support P.L. 94-142 (IDEA).
Now they must also raise local tax
dollars to support NCLB as well.
* * *
We identify this shortfall
as a federal education tax
and urge our state
legislators to remain vigilant
about
federal regulations imposed on New York.
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OCSBA members adopted the
following resolution at the October 5th
Delegates' Meeting. The resolution was presented by Brendan Coyne
(Cornwall).
WHEREAS,
this association is concerned about the ever-increasing cost of public
education that must be borne by the owners of real property in Orange
County and elsewhere in the State of New York, and
WHEREAS,
this association recognizes that despite its efforts and those of other
school districts throughout the State of New York to try to keep tax
rates
within bounds, escalating costs of education are often not easily
controllable
and result in tax rates that are becoming burdensome,
and
WHEREAS,
it is apparent to this association that the continued reliance on real
property taxes to fund all or substantial portions of the costs of
public
education is a condition that cannot be permitted to continue, and
WHEREAS,
this association believes that the time for action on this problem is
now,
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED as follows:
1. That by
this resolution the Orange County School Boards Association calls upon
our elected
leaders in Albany - the Governor, the New York State Senate and the New
York
State Assembly, together with other State officials - to address this
problem
once and for all and to develop a solution that will provide adequate
funds for
public education for the school districts in Orange County and for all
school
districts in the State of New York without relying in whole or in
substantial
part on real property taxation.
2. That the
Orange County School Boards Association directs that
copies of this resolution be forwarded to the Governor, the Majority
Leader of
the New York State Senate, the Speaker of the New York State Assembly,
together
with such other public officials and bodies as may be appropriate under
the
circumstances.
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LETTERS
TO OUR LEGISLATORS
February 19, 2005
Senator John Bonacic
815 Legislative Office Building
Albany, New York 12247
Dear Senator Bonacic:
The members of the Orange County School Boards
Association are aware of the
school finance reform legislation (S.164) you have proposed.
While many people have
talked about changing the way our schools are financed, we are
heartened to see that you
have made an attempt at reform by proposing S.164. In an arena of
prolonged
discussions and countless school funding reports, we applaud your
pro-active efforts.
Focused efforts to find an equitable and affordable solution in NYS
will set us apart from
other states where school finance changes have been tied up in the
courts for years. These
delays negatively affect student learning opportunities.
We believe your proposed legislation is an excellent
beginning to solving a
problem that has burdened our schools and our communities for a very
long time. To
enhance everyone’s understanding of the complexities of school funding,
we welcome the
opportunity to meet with you and discuss the different aspects of your
proposal.
During this legislative session, we hope sincerely
that you accomplish a fair,
equitable, and adequate system of funding our schools. Please let
us know how we can
help.
Sincerely,
Richard Rivera
President, OCSBA
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