Just Say NO to PVUSD Bond and Override

[Jose Borrajero]

Submitted by Lynne Weaver

 

BOND ISSUE

 

PVUSD has not spent bond funds wisely.

 

Voters approved a bond issue in 2005 for $161 million.  According to an article in The Arizona Republic, the PVUSD Board saw fit to take $49 million of the proceeds and "green" their buildings using no-bid contracts to buy sustainable green recycled carpets at 31 sites and sustainable roofs at 16 sites.  They also expanded the benefits office.

 

District residents will still be paying for the 2005 bonds plus interest charges via property taxes or higher rents for another 25 years .  Would you take out a 30 year loan to buy carpets?  That's what PVUSD did.

 

Piling on debt is bad.  No one wants to emulate Greece's collapse under the weight of its debt load.  And, bonds are a form of debt.

 

PVUSD is already carrying $239 million in bonds.  Adding another $203 million would almost double the debt load to $442 million - that's getting close to a HALF BILLION in debt!  Greece here we come!

 

Vote NO on the bond issue.  Vote NO to piling on more debt.

 

  

OVERRIDE

 

Every $100 increase in your property taxes reduces the value of your home by $1,200 according to a study by Indiana University economist Morton Marcus.  The higher your property taxes, the less your home is worth, the harder it is to sell.

 

PVUSD passed a 10% override in November of 2010 and imposed higher property taxes on struggling families during an economic recession.

 

The total PVUSD budget is approximately $300 million.  Funding received from the state was reduced by $3.2 million during the 2010-11 school year, a reduction of less than 1.5%.  There was no reduction in revenue from primary property taxes and the Board plans to raise the tax rate on what is the largest item on your tax bill.

 

The Board approved a budget with nothing allotted for text books.  Now they propose a $5.9 million override for "instructional materials" otherwise called text books.  Text books are a priority budget item, not an excuse to raise taxes.

 

The annual financial report from the Superintendent of Public Instruction shows PVUSD is spending $9,403 per student per year.  This is more than enough to provide a quality education.

 

Vote No on the override.