NTF Issue Paper: legwatch46.doc.  5-07.

NEBRASKA TAXPAYERS FOR FREEDOM ISSUE PAPER:
LB 641: DOUGLAS-SARPY COUNTY EDUCATION BILL SOAKS TAXPAYERS.

BACKGROUND.  In 2006, the state legislature passed LB 1024 (see NTF issue paper) that reorganized the public school districts in Douglas and Sarpy Counties.  In an effort to satisfy many competing interests and avoid the continuation of expensive lawsuits against the state, liberal State Sen. Ron Raikes forcibly pushed through LB 1024 in the hectic closing days of the 2006 session.  This legislation immediately attracted fierce opposition from the taxpaying public, school administrators and teachers, and parents of school children.  Therefore, at the beginning of the 2007 legislative session, the same competing groups pressed their respective cases to gut LB 1024 and replace it with new legislation.  Once again, Sen. Raikes attempted to satisfy these special interests and has satisfied almost no one, especially taxpayers who would pay dearly if LB 641 passes the Legislature.  This bill would raise our school property taxes greatly and add layers of bureaucracy and bureaucrats.  The legislation is unnecessary to basic education and so complex that no one can say definitely how much it will cost taxpayers or increase educational achievement. 

LEARNING COMMUNITY.  This new layer of bureaucracy will pay each individual member a $30,000 salary.  The 18-member, 6-district Learning Community, would levy a common property tax levy for school district general funds, district building funds, and capital projects, without a vote of the people and in addition to current property taxes levied by included school districts, who will continue to set their own levies.  Metro school districts would surrender 3c of their present $1.05 property tax levying authority to the learning community for a metro area building fund etc.  In return, these districts would receive an additional infusion of state aid (our state sales and income tax dollars).  The Community would have a 5c levy to construct new schools and school resource centers.   The Learning Community would not have to ask for a majority vote at the ballot box for construction projects, as bond campaigns for individual school districts now require.  Sec. 79-1073 revises the distribution of the general fund common levy, so that several wealthier districts that levy higher property taxes subsidize districts like OP$, which have lower valuations on property.  Current budget limitations will disappear to reflect the needs calculated for each school district.  Distance education, telecommunications services, and Learning Community allowances will become subtracted from general fund operation expenditure budget lids beginning in 2008-2009.  Learning Community coordinating councils will help with dispute resolution among districts, including an ombudsman and referrals to mediation centers. The Community would enforce additional integration and educational achievement goals set for minority kids.  In each of these new election districts, the board members would develop diversity plans for poor students and illegal alien pupils. This bureaucracy will supersede individual school districts, appropriate their authority, and extinguish further local control. 

COORDINATING COUNCIL.  The Douglas and Sarpy Co. election commissioners will divide learning community territory into 12 equal districts to facilitate election of members to the Learning Community Coordinating Council.  This council will hold annual school fairs to provide community students and parents opportunity to explore educational opportunities at schools outside their home districts.   

EDUCATION CENTERS.  Education centers would organize around 2-3 high school attendance areas.  Each new education center would have a board of 8 members elected from election districts, like school board members win election now.  Another bureaucracy paralleling school boards.  Each school district with education centers must have an administrative board of 2 members from each education center, a board chosen by the education center boards.  Each education center would become treated as an individual school district for state aid purposes, adding numerous new entities to receive state aid (our state sales and income tax dollars).  More expense for the Douglas County Election Commissioner to create 8 new election districts for education centers.  The fiscal impact of these centers remains unknown.  Through these centers, each school district must guarantee access to early childhood programs for poor kids, class size reduction and maintenance of small classes for poor kids, student access to social workers in school buildings or elsewhere without parental notification, access to extended school day and year programs, mentoring for new teachers, professional development for teachers and administrators focusing on addressing education needs of poor and illegal alien students. 

ELEMENTARY CENTERS.  This new layer of bureaucracy within Douglas and Sarpy Counties would cost taxpayers here an unknown number of property tax dollars.  The Learning Community would provide these centers focused on pupils facing educational challenges.  The coordinating council must establish at least 1 elementary learning center region for each 25 elementary schools in which at least 35% of students attending the schools in such area are poor.  These centers supposedly would help academic success for the poor, illegal alien, and transient students.  The executive directorsof these centers would serve 6 yr. terms, salary set by the coordinating council.  The exec may appoint assistants and employees at his discretion.  The council would appoint a community advisory committee of at least 5-9 for each region.  Each region must have at least 1 elementary learning center facility not in a building owned by the school district, but located in a high-poverty area, owned or leased by the Learning Community. These center would offer pupils computer labs, tutors, mentors, social services for transient students, extended school day programs, extended school year programs, advocates to discourage truancy, transportation for truant students, English classes for parents and other family members, health services (Planned Parenthood?), mental health services, child care for parents working on literacy skills or working with their kids on academic skills, nutritional services, free transportation for participating families, distribution of school supplies, interpreter services, transportation of poor kid parents to school functions, and unproved pilot projects to aid the academic achievement of poor and illegal alien elementary students.  Parents of illegal aliens could take high school equivalency classes.  Supplemental salaries for teachers teaching extended hours in these schools in poor neighborhoods.

SOCIAL ENGINEERING.  The bill would force school districts in the Learning Community to provide sufficient openings for students residing outside the attendance area of each school, so that at least 10% of students attending these schools could reside outside their attendance areas, meaning that taxpayers in wealthier districts must subsidize students living in poorer districts.  School districts must provide transportation for students attending a school in the district to which they transferred into without regard to resident school district from which they came.  Students in the 2-county area could attend any school in the Learning Community with free or fee-paid transportation, with preference for transfers for poor students.  Free rides for poor kids or those attending a school in which 35% of students attending in the building have poverty labels.  Thus, a huge influx would affect Sarpy County and suburban Douglas County schools. 

MORE BUREAUCRATS.  A student achievement coordinator would develop a plan to improve academic achievement with focus on poor students and those with limited English ability.  This hire must have background and training in teaching methods to address poverty kid needs.  All new employees in the Learning Community and its satellite bureaucracies will become included in the generous state education retirement plan.  The coordinating council would appoint an ombudsman who can analyze law, administration, and public policy, for a 6-yr. term.  He could issue subpoenas to compel someone to appear and give sworn testimony, though he is not a judicial official.  He could accept complaints, valid or otherwise, from anyone and conduct investigations leading to witch hunts.  No judicial review of his proceedings or opinions.  Neither he nor his staffers would have to testify or produce evidence in a judicial proceeding concerning their official conduct or duties. 

NEW NEIGHBORS.  Learning Community coordinating councils will engage with the Omaha Metro Planning Commission in long-range planning to place subsidized residential housing in each school district to promote integrated schools.  The council would approve poverty plans for member school districts. 

TAKE ACTION NOW.  Current school districts and boards can accomplish everything envisioned in this grandiose social engineering project at no added expense.  Property taxpayers in Douglas and Sarpy County will pay more for the learning center bureaucracies, new specialty school for minority and illegal alien children, and to subsidize other metro schools in economically-depressed areas.  Additional state taxpayer sales and income tax dollars will fund this gigantic social engineering experiment. Suburban Douglas County schools and Sarpy County schools will become inundated with transfer students participating in the integration program.  

Research, analysis, and documentation for this issue paper done by Nebraska Taxpayers for Freedom, with express prior permission granted for its use by Citizens for Local Control, Cherry County Taxpayers, Dawes County Taxpayers, and Western NE Taxpayers Association.  5-07.  C