The Oley Valley School Board passed a no millage increase budget for 2010-2011. The Agenda for the board meeting Wednesday evening had been printed. It had a .29 mill increase. The millage would increase from 23.82 to 24.11 mills. If the history of the budgeting process was any indicator, it was a done deal. There would be the perfunctory vote to raise taxes.
However, when the Motion to pass the Agenda item began, and board members where asked if they had any questions or comments on the Motion, several board members took exception to the numbers presented.
Their concerns centered around the number of years where the district had six figure fund balances each year and the practice of putting four hundred thousand dollars in budget reserve for no legitimate reason. They wanted to use some of the surplus towards taxpayer relief.
After the discussion, the vote was taken on the first motion to pass a .29 mill increase. The result was four votes for the increase and four votes against the increase. Mr. Bieber, Mr. Burns, Mr. Kubitz and Ms.Shultz voted, No.
Mr. Heckman, Mr. Hannum, Mr. Richard, Ms.Ewing voted, Yes.
Since it was a tie, the motion did not pass.
After further negotiating, the board agreed to use excess funds to have a no millage increase.
A second vote was taken, and the no tax increase budget was passed.
Mr. Bieber, Mr. Burns, Mr. Kubitz, Mr. Richard, Mr. Hannum, Ms. Shultz, and Mr. Heckman voted, Yes.
Ms.Ewing voted,No.
The 2010-2011 millage will stay at 23.82 mills.
Thanks to those who voted for no tax increase and shame on you who didn't. Thank goodness Dr. Doom was absent or the outcome would have been much different.
ReplyDeleteMrs. Ewing voted twice to raise taxes, the second time being out voted 7 to 1.
ReplyDeleteWhy is she on the board? Out of touch or out of her mind?
Oh yeah, she is a retired Oley teacher and dosen't know any other way to vote. Union teacher who just raises taxes no matter what.
It's all well and good that for two years we haven't had a tax increase but the board is setting the stage for a whopper over the next couple years. I was told by a board member in a nearby school district that the pension shortfall, which the school districts will have to make up, will add 5 mils to the budget over the next two years. That's some serious tax increases coming down the highway...
ReplyDeleteHalf of the Berks County Superintendents gave back their pay raises. Why wasn't Dr. Zackon's name on this list?
ReplyDeleteBecause he received no raise last year.
ReplyDeleteDoes that mean he was not doing his job or that he was being paid too much in the first place?
ReplyDeleteIt means the board was being fiscally prudent. I guess you're damned if you do or damned if you don't. Could you tell us what the difference is between getting a raise and then giving it back or just not receiving a raise in the first place? Some people are never satisfied.
ReplyDelete"It means the board was being fiscally prudent."
ReplyDeleteA superintendent that does not receive a yearly salary increase raises a lot of questions.
School board fiscal prudence would require a lot of arm twisting and quid pro quo compensation.
Last time I heard, superintendents do not work for free.
"Could you tell us what the difference is between getting a raise and then giving it back or just not receiving a raise in the first place?"
It would give an indication on what side of the coin an administrator resides, education or compensation.
If he is overpaid in the first place and does not give back, then there is no measure of the person.
If he is overpaid and gives back, there should be recognition.
If he gets a raise, and gives back, then there is a measure of the person, as well.
I see none of these scenarios in the case of the OVSD superintendent.
Perhaps you could inform us as to the contrary.
"Some people are never satisfied."
Strange, that is what people say about a school board's insatiable appetite to spend money.
The article in the Reading Eagle was about superintendents giving back pay increases, not about school boards. The sub-issue is whether Dr. Zackon gave any money back. At this point there is no public information, he has given back any compensation to help to the district.
ReplyDeleteHe gives back part of his compensation every year in the form of property taxes. He isn't obligated to give anything back, especially when he didn't even receive a raise for the first year of his new contract.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you should focus your attention on the administrators who actually received a raise this year and hound them to give it back.
Jeff Zackon did recieve a raise in 2009 - 3% and another raise in 2010 - 2.3% he was asked by the board to refuse the raises as a good gesture of sensitivity to the economy and also in recognition of the teacher salary give back in the re-negotiated contract last year. Zackon would not turn down the raises.
ReplyDelete"He gives back part of his compensation every year in the form of property taxes." - What a stupid thing to say. Does that mean I give back a larger part of my zero raise that I got this year? Paying property taxes is not giving back. It is paying the ransome the county and state hold over your private property. PA funds public education in the worst way possible. There should be a add on to the sales tax that would fund schools. Sam Rohrer has the plan, Harrisburg and the state legislators do not have the courage to make it happen. Dave Kessler never really supported eliminating property taxes. He claims to want some half way effort on primary residences only. Kessler lied to the voters when he ran for office because he said he wanted to ELIMINATE property taxes. Kessler is an Ed Rendell thug.
ReplyDeleteOf course it was a stupid thing to say but you took the bait like a big mouth bass takes a minnow. Everything you wrote is true but I love rattling chains to wake up the troops.
ReplyDeleteNo. The person took your bait and spit it out. You are the foolish one who set your self up to look stupid.
ReplyDeleteRight on Taxpayer Girl!
ReplyDeleteThe school district is going to give each teacher a laptop. Too bad they can't afford to buy their own.
ReplyDelete$115,000 for the new Asst. Superintendent. Just because the previous person was earning that shouldn't mean the new one is entitled to it.
Does Cappa ever attend a board meeting anymore? He missed last months vote on the budget and was absent again last night. Well, on second thought, maybe that's a good thing.
Did anyone notice that Dave Kessler our State Rep, Township Supervisor and Oley planning commissioner screwed up when the Oley Twp suprvisors passed an ordinance banning legally carried concealed weapons in the Twp Bldg. - THEY VIOLATED STATE LAW and tonight they were supposed to reverse their own ordinance. The NRA kicked his rear. What a total empty suit Kessler is. BTW - how many offices does one power hungry guy named Kessler need?
ReplyDeleteThere was an article in the Reading Eagle about the illegal gun ban. The supervisors did not look good on this one.
ReplyDeleteDave Kessler, Chairman of the oley twp supervisors, Oley Planning Commissionmember and PA State Rep. had to ignorantly admit his eror last night. As one person said at the meeting "as a state legislator, you should have known better." Kessler dosent care. He is a arrogant pushy goof who just wants his things his way. The person here said before, "how many offices does one power hungry guy named Kessler need?" Well in November we can vote him out of the State Rep job. That should free his mind a little to get state law correct here in Oley.
ReplyDeleteKessler has not done much on property tax relief or the outrageous state pensions. New faces, new ideas.
ReplyDeleteKessler took an oath to defend the constitution of Pennsylvania. In that constitution it states that the right to bear arms for self-defense and the defense of others "shall not be denied". He obviously failed to obey the constitution and should immediately resign his office.
ReplyDeleteAlert from Berks County Patriots
ReplyDelete"If you live in Exeter Twp. you really need to attend this meeting and
stop this.
Exeter Township to Consider Overreaching Discharge Ban!
Please Stand-Up and Make Your Voices Heard!
On Monday, July 26, the Exeter Township Board of Supervisors will
consider a broad and overreaching attack on our Second Amendment
freedoms.
An ordinance has been proposed that would, if enacted, outlaw the
discharge of not only firearms, but air guns and bows and arrows, as
well. Violation of this ordinance would result in a $1,000 fine.
Please attend the Board of Supervisors meeting on Monday, July 26,
and if possible, voice your opposition to this measure. The Board of
Supervisors will meet at 7:00 p.m. at the Township Office located at
4975 DeMoss Road, just off Rt. 422.
Also, please contact the members of the Exeter Township Board of
Supervisors and respectfully express your disapproval of this
proposed ordinance. Contact information can be found below.
Donald R. Wilson, Chairman
dwilson@exetertownship.com
Michelle Kircher, Vice Chairwoman
mkircher@exetertownship.com
Dona L. Starr
dstarr@exetertownship.com
Kenneth A. Smith
ksmith@exetertownship.com
Gary E. Lloyd
glloyd@exetertownship.com"
First Oley, now Exeter. Hunters will need to be in great shape because they now have to tackle the deer.
I wonder if our truly below average state rep Dave Kessler went to the Exeter Twp meeting to testify as a 2nd amendment rights expert?
ReplyDeleteGlad the NRA and Gun Owners Against Crime educated him and forced him and the other Oley Twp supervisors to withdraw their own illegal ordinance.
Kessler should have known better.
Someone posted that State Rep Dave Kessler is on the Oley Twp planning commission. I checked the oley site and it seems he is not. However he is one of the Oley Twp supervisors and a state rep and an annoying power hungry goof.
ReplyDeleteLOL, love the post above about Kessler. Truer words were never written. He is also a cheap arrogant man and a bad neighbor.
ReplyDeleteKessler or one of his little helpers must have been at my house campaigning because he oe they stuck a paper under my door mat. The info was about his plan to grow algae to burn coal cleaner or some nonsense like that. I happen to know about energy and I know what he is selling is snake oil. I do not need my state rep trying to make PA an environmentally eco friendly state. Kessler's job is simple - cut my taxes, eliminate my proerty taxes, stop spending in Harrisburg. If he worked on those things PA's economy would be booming. Kessler has done NONE of that. I will most asuredly vote for David Maloney in November.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I read the first post at the top of this link about Joanne Ewing twice voting in one school board meeting to raise school property taxes. Her vote was outrageously stupid, especially the second time being out voted 7 to 1. She is a classic example of teacher thinking. Just raise taxes, just raise taxes. Can I assume she is a democrat like Kessler? We need less of these types of people who do not respect hard working families struggling to pay high taxes.
ReplyDeleteThe new Assistant Superintendent has not even arrived at our district and already there is controversy about her.
ReplyDeleteI hope this is not a bad omen.
She must be something special if her district doesn't want to give her up. For $115,000 a year she better be.
ReplyDeleteThe current assistant superintendent does not even make $115,000.
ReplyDeleteThis board is shameless. Yes, and that includes you, Mr. Bieber. Everyone is so happy with the board because they didn't raise taxes but that train wreck is coming and will be here next June. Meanwhile the board will pat each other on the back and blame Harrisburg for "making them" raise taxes and increase spending. Taxpayers in the Oley Valley are in for a rude awakening...
ReplyDeleteWould the writer of the 5:14PM comment please clarify what the heck she is talking about? So now you aren't happy that Oley didn't raise taxes two years in a row? Had there been a tax increase you'd be screaming. There is no pleasing you is there?
ReplyDeleteAt least Bieber was smarter than the former teacher Joanne Ewing who voted twice in the same meeting to raise taxes.
Where did I say that I wasn't happy with no tax increases? Your reading and comprehension skills are a little lacking. Now, read it again slowly and maybe you will understand.
ReplyDeleteHey, School Board, how's that new Assistant Superintendent working out for you? BWAHAHAHAHA!!
ReplyDeleteWhoever is making the STUPID KOOLAID in Oley, needs to stop passing it to the school board and superintendent. Oley gets into enough trouble all by themselves, and now they've hired a STRANGE whack job from York.
ReplyDeleteWhat is going on in this school district? Check the link. There are 10 pages of google info on this person. Looks like Oley is retaining their TOP BUFFOON slot.
We do not need to get into any more lawsuits in this district. We've had enough. Remember Amthor Steel. It is not yet over. Oley appealed to the Commonwealth Court and the hearing is set for September 13th in Harrisburg. Maybe we should run a BUS.
http://www.yorkdispatch.com/ci_15695672
How is it that John and Barbara Bieber's property is listed in the Delinquent Tax Claims in this morning's paper for unpaid taxes?
ReplyDeleteHow is it that in the past few years more people are unable to pay their taxes?
ReplyDeleteYou can start with reckless school board spending.
Nearly $500,000 in legal fees for the seven year Amthor Steel Middle School Lawsuit, over $2,000,000 to "repair a track", taking the millions from the Nextel agreement and poring it into a non-educational wish list project, $41,196.03 for the Medical Pool fund for health expenses not covered by contract,a recent $13,000 one year increase in the Superintendent's salary, thousands for administrative junkets, are a few examples of poor financial stewardship.
Next year will not be any better.
Families are struggling, they can barely make ends meet. But this does not stop the educrats from making more and more demands,yet showing little or no improvement on their performance.
The state warned the school districts not to expect bailouts.
Teacher and administrators pensions, salaries, benefits, Amthor Steel, the swaption derivative, a bloated administration, laptops for all high school students, more expensive administrator junkets, maintenance of a million dollar sports complex are just a few of the future expenses hanging over the taxpayers' heads.
These items are not the result of the state not sending money, they are the result of the district spending money at a pace that was oblivious to people's ability to pay.
Governing bodies work under the principle that taxpayers are the slush and bailout fund for their malfeasance.
Citizens should get more involved with the budget. They should bring accountability to a process that sees little public oversight and participation.
The article in the Sunday edition of the Reading Eagle, "Scholastic sports: Worth the Price?" did not have the correct amount of money OVSD spent on sports related projects since 2003.
ReplyDeleteThe paper reports the district paid $992,000.00 on gym renovation. In fact, the board spent over $2,000,000.00 on a sports complex as well.
The total then is over $2,992,000.00 for athletic construction.
These expenditures represent approximately 4.79 mills of school property taxes.
Great letter to the editor.
ReplyDeleteWhich one? Try to enlighten us.
ReplyDeleteThe one where the school districts waste millions on overspending for sports while they could use the money for education.
ReplyDeleteReading Eagle Sunday paper, Sept. 12,2010.
According to the paper this morning nothing happened at the board meeting last night other than the non-assistant superintendent that they can't talk about. This blog should try to give those of us who can't come to meetings a detailed report each month. We sure as heck don't get any from the Reading Eagle.
ReplyDeleteWhy not go to a few board meetings?
ReplyDelete"those of us who can't come to meetings" I would if I could.
ReplyDeleteAll quiet in the OVSD. Too quiet.
ReplyDeleteHow long are they going to wait for the new Assistant Superintendent to clear up her legal problems?
ReplyDeleteThe Reading Eagle says she will be charged with giving false information to the police.
Her trial is set for October.
The district does not respond to inquiries about her.
So what is going on?
Why doesn't the district just move on and go find another Asst Superintendent? By their own admission they do not have any employment agreement with her and are under no obligation to hire her. Something just doesn't smell right in this whole affair. The school board needs to wash their hands of this woman and move on.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the postings on this blog, the district has major issues handing over OUR heads.
ReplyDeleteAmthor Steel, interest rate swap, and now a hiring problem.
Do they have idea what they are doing and what is it going to cost US?
No and No.
ReplyDeleteGot a flyer today saying Kessler voted to spend $600,000 Million for Arlen Spector library.
ReplyDeleteAre you kidding me..is he out of his mind!?
We can use tax dollars in this district not on a library in Philadelphia.
It was $600 million, regardless it was ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget Kessler's nutty dream to grow algae in PA to turn it into jet fuel and create 1,000 jobs. Big stinking deal. The Marcellus shale boom IS creating 110,000 jobs and Kessler voted to tax the life out of it. KESSLER MUST GO!
ReplyDeleteKessler represents the local teacher's union, environmental wackos and the liberal tax and spend elite of his district. His tenure as State Representative has been one of smoke and mirrors. Useless town meetings and fund raisers at liberal supporter's homes does not justify his re-election. Township Supervisor should be the highest elective office he should ever hold again.
ReplyDeleteDr. Tracy Shank is the best Asst. Superintendent candidate anywhere in Pennsylvania? They can't wait for her legal problems to play out? It isn't like they would lose her to another district. Right now she is toxic and no other district would touch her. What if she doesn't "prove that she is the professional we believe she is"(as Mr. Hannum suggested)? Then it's too late, she will be under contract. This board has made back room deals and keeping the public in the dark into an art form. They really are a disgrace.
ReplyDelete