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From the Clarence Bee -
http://www.clarencebee.com/news/2015...itional_s.htmlDistrict to restore 11 positions with additional state aid
Tax levy stays below cap
by STEVEN JAGORD
Editor
With new state aid information for school districts finally announced in Albany on March 31, the Clarence district found itself in the pleasant position of having more funds than it initially anticipated when crafting its 2015-16 budget.
Originally calling for a tax levy at the cap of 4.78 percent in January, administrators reduced that number to 3.9 percent in mid-March, realizing they had underestimated the amount of funding that would come in from the state. During the March meeting, the district estimated it would receive $800,000 in additional aid. When aid amounts were announced, the district was actually allocated $1.1 million.
The funds were seen as a mixed blessing because there have been two decidedly different opinions on what to do with it. Some have called for restoration of some of the 113 positions lost the past four years because of decreased state funding. Others see reducing the tax levy even further as the prudent way to spend the money.
The community was sharply divided two years ago when the district attempted to exceed its tax cap significantly in order to avoid a sweep of layoffs and program cuts. It was defeated soundly by a 2-to-1 margin. So with this additional funding, the question was what to do with the money: restore positions or reduce the levy?
During its final budget workshop of the year, Superintendent Geoffrey Hicks detailed that the district would stay below the cap at 3.9 percent and use additional funds to bring back 11 teaching positions spread across all six Clarence school buildings.
The positions chosen for restoration were determined by their degree of impact on students and the core programs in the district. They also were selected based on the amount of students who would be affected and the likelihood that there would not be any issues to continue funding those positions.
We dont want to recommend bringing back a position or a program and then cutting it in the near future, Hicks said. We dont believe that any of the positions we bring back with normal state aid - will have to be reduced.
A five-year projection of state funding was then detailed by Hicks to reiterate that maintaining the positions should not be an issue. The positions that will be restored if voters approve the budget are:
A special education teacher to be shared by Clarence Center and Ledgeview elementary schools.
An English language arts teacher and a math teacher at both Clarence high and middle schools.
An elementary teacher at Harris Hill Elementary to reduce class sizes.
A technology education teacher at the high school to increase elective opportunities.
A business teacher at the high school to serve the Academy of Finance and Business, which has had to turn students away in recent years.
A music teacher for the district.
Two librarians, which will bring all four elementary schools up to one full-time librarian position.
The budget for 2015-16 is $75.4 million, an increase of 3.8 percent from last year. The proposed budget includes a tax rate at $15.37 per $1,000 of assessed value. The tax increase would be $114 annually for a $200,000 home.
Georgia L Schlager
You do know that the reassessment likely won't affect your school tax bill, right?
1. the school district doesn't control assessments - not the timing, not the amounts
2. the levy for next year has already been set. If assessments go up, that affects the value of the town's properties, and the tax rate goes down. The net result is usually a negligible - if any - change in the dollar amount of your tax bill.
3. Your assessment went up because the town hasn't done a comprehensive town-wide reassessment in many years. It is reflective of the increase in property values that are due, in part, to the efficient and excellent school district we have.
This website makes money off of a depraved and idiotic conspiracy theory.
Pundit is such a word bending Party Tool.
They raise your assessment - then next year they raise your taxes because in the mean time the Politicians vote to spend more in their new budgets.
Whats more 10% of $100,000.00 or 10% of $150,000.00 ?
But wait what they'll do is increase spending and say - our overall assessed values went up - Hurray - Hurray
So then they come out with new numbers - OH ! Look - we cut back and your next years increase will only be 8% because we cut the budget to the bone and the assessment went up - so look at how good we did !
So, in the end your taxes go up for ever - their spending goes up forever - but wait it wasn't as bad as it could be because your property looks like its worth more - and your "Fare Share" of taxes to pay for the great schools, services and tax funded pensions(patronage employees/politicians) also increased for the rest of your life.
But using the "Party Double talk" as Pundit does - you know its not the "reassessment" that causes your taxes to rise - He is actually right - like him, the reassessment: is a tool - Its uncontrolled spending that causes taxes to rise.
#Dems play musical chairs + patronage and nepotism = entitlement !
I can always count on idiotic ad hominem attacks from people in this forum.
Except the school tax rate is expected next year to go from a projected $15.37/$1000 to an estimated $14.20/$1000, down from the current $14.70. So, there's that.They raise your assessment - then next year they raise your taxes because in the mean time the Politicians vote to spend more in their new budgets.
Whats more 10% of $100,000.00 or 10% of $150,000.00 ?
Actually, given the rate of inflation and the town growth rate, growth in spending of approximately 3% is flat. That is, if you believe in economics. Lots of emojis though, so at least you could hypothetically convince a 14 year-old who doesn't bother to research.But wait what they'll do is increase spending and say - our overall assessed values went up - Hurray - Hurray
So then they come out with new numbers - OH ! Look - we cut back and your next years increase will only be 8% because we cut the budget to the bone and the assessment went up - so look at how good we did !
So, in the end your taxes go up for ever - their spending goes up forever - but wait it wasn't as bad as it could be because your property looks like its worth more - and your "Fare Share" of taxes to pay for the great schools, services and tax funded pensions(patronage employees/politicians) also increased for the rest of your life.
But using the "Party Double talk" as Pundit does - you know its not the "reassessment" that causes your taxes to rise - He is actually right - like him, the reassessment: is a tool - Its uncontrolled spending that causes taxes to rise.
This website makes money off of a depraved and idiotic conspiracy theory.
1. Irrelevant. Doesn't make a difference if the school district doesn't control assessments, timing or the amount. What is relevant is your school taxes are based on your assessment multiplied by the tax rate. Correct?
If your home was assessed at $150k originally and afterwards assessed at $190k are you saying your school taxes would not increase? I do understand if every property in the community all increased in value at the same percentage it's possible that the tax rate would end up lowering across the board but that never happens because assessments increases/decreases vary.
2. Irrelevant. The net result would only be negligible if all properties increased by the same percentage. Correct? Some properties drop in value, others stay the same while others go up. Has any town in Erie County ever reassessed all properties by the same percentage?
3. Maybe. Maybe not. It is a mixture of things including incompetent assessors in some cases. Quite a few people do not have children so whether the school is efficient and/or excellent doesn't come into play.
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Why punish the students of a school district by voting to fail a budget because the value of your property has increased? Not for nothing, but Clarence hasn't had a townwide re-assessment in about 6 years, and property values going up is sort of what we as property owners want.
It depends on the re-assessment. Because the school tax levy was determined before the re-assessment was announced, it's not like the schools need to go back and ask for more money. In calculating the tax rate in order to satisfy the levy, the district divides the levy by the total value of all taxable properties in the district. Before the re-assessment, that number was figured to be around $15.30/$1000 of assessed value. Now that the re-assessments have hit, the district anticipates the rate will be closer to $14.15/$1000 - a drop from the current $14.80.If your home was assessed at $150k originally and afterwards assessed at $190k are you saying your school taxes would not increase? I do understand if every property in the community all increased in value at the same percentage it's possible that the tax rate would end up lowering across the board but that never happens because assessments increases/decreases vary.
I did the math on my re-assessment. If the figures shown above hold up, my 15-16 school taxes might actually be $20 lower than originally projected, despite my property value increasing $25,000.
Well, no, it's not "irrelevant". What you mean to say is that it may vary, depending on one's reassessment. I forget what the average and median increases are, but I think it was under 10%. Some outliers will exist, but overall, one's school tax bill should not change significantly versus what was originally forecast. As I indicated, mine may go down despite my increased value.2. Irrelevant. The net result would only be negligible if all properties increased by the same percentage. Correct? Some properties drop in value, others stay the same while others go up. Has any town in Erie County ever reassessed all properties by the same percentage?
[/quote]3. Maybe. Maybe not. It is a mixture of things including incompetent assessors in some cases. Quite a few people do not have children so whether the school is efficient and/or excellent doesn't come into play.
Well, the efficiency and excellence of the school will come into play if that person or his estate decides to sell that home. The property values in Clarence aren't just higher because our houses are bigger - they're higher because are taxes are among the lowest in the region, and our schools are in the top 3. If you don't believe me go to any realty site - Zillow is a good one - and you'll see that school information plays a huge role in people's decision-making process when it comes to buying a home.
This website makes money off of a depraved and idiotic conspiracy theory.
The projected tax rate was $15.30. The actual tax rate will be $14.34 per thousand. Last year's tax rate was $14.80
Georgia L Schlager
They should close all the schools in Clarence and zero out school taxes. Let people stay at home and school their own kids or pay for private schools with the $3-5K per year they've saved on their taxes.
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