Playing With The Budget?

To the Editor:

In your article of June 16, 2006, “Finance Bd. Continues Its Call For School Budget Specifics,” I found the mention of the $1.7 million surplus to be incredibly disturbing. Is anyone paying any attention to the games the Board of Ed is apparently playing with their budget? The Board of Ed reports a $60,000 savings from insurance benefits and Mr Kortze says its more like $250,000; with fuzzy math like that its no wonder the Board of Ed has $1.7 million left over to play with. As Mr Kortze pointed out, “The parents and taxpayers are told the sky is falling (during budget deliberations) and the money is there all along.”

I want to know who is supposed to be keeping an eye on the Board of Education, because clearly, not only is their math suspect but so is their ability to tell the truth to the taxpayers. Each year taxpayers are being hit with higher and higher taxes, and each year its the same story from the Board of Ed. Their budget deliberation is always the same; it’s a case of give us what we want or we’ll make your kids suffer. The finance board must get after them and put a stop to these apparent games being played with taxpayer money. That money belongs to the taxpayers something the Board of Ed seems to not understand.

Michael A. Marsalisi

3 King Street, Newtown                                                    July 17, 2006