DATE: Tuesday, May 6, 1997                  TAG: 9705060006

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B10  EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Opinion 
SOURCE: BY LOUISA STRAYHORN 

                                            LENGTH:   79 lines

ANALYZE BUDGET FOR RESPONSIBLE LEADERSHIP

Over the past two decades, the phenomenal growth of our city has played havoc with the individual citizen's tax burden as the major revenue source to support our community way of life. With a low per capita income, and few large corporations to share the tax burden, we face the overwhelming needs caused by rapid growth in the '70s, which continue to haunt us with never-ending road and building project backlogs. As taxpayers and members of our community, we will all have to decide how much we want to spend to maintain our way of life.

As we approach a billion-dollar total budget for our city, it is imperative that taxpayers understand where the money goes. Since schools represent almost half of that billion dollars, it is crucial that those who supply those dollars, citizens who have children in school and the 70 percent of households that don't, are provided with accurate information about what is requested.

I am concerned that all of the questions about the school budget have not been answered to determine what it takes to maintain a quality school system. For instance, if the goal is to provide a better education for our children by lowering class size and increasing the number of teachers, did the school need to add six assistant/associate superintendents? The approved School Budget shows that two years ago, school year '95-'96, we had four at $341,781 vs. '96-'97, when we have 10 at a cost of $863,921. In other areas of the city, our emphasis is on providing front-line employees who deliver services directly to citizens. This is true from the Police Department patrols to the city manager's office.

Recently, the growth in school enrollment has been slowing. For next year, only an additional 238 students are projected. I am concerned that 197 additional positions were proposed at average cost of $38,000 each while at the same time, in this year's budget, 120 positions (valued at $4.5 million) were left unfilled.

I am concerned that a 38 increase in gas and oil budget line items reflect an overestimated expense. There is no evidence that prices will increase this much. If a 5 percent increase had been assumed instead of 38 percent, $330,000 could be saved.

In addition, schools anticipate a year-end surplus of $12 million to $16 million. These funds can be used to offset some of the $5 million worth of anticipated one-time expenses found by both school and city staffs that are in the operating budget, as well as millions of dollars' worth of other one-time costs identified to meet the needs of the children.

I am concerned that the School Board expected the city to fully fund the school budget and ask for a tax increase so it could use these funds as a special emergency reserve. Was it not possible to identify such purchases and lower the budget request in the beginning? These are just a few of many items that should be explained so our citizens and their City Council representatives will have all of the information.

Yes, a quality school system is inextricably linked to our goals for the city, and to accuse anyone of not considering schools a priority or of loving taxes is insulting. When I accepted the responsibility as a member of the closest level of government to the citizens, I realized that the buck stops with City Council. However, the burden would surely be easier to bear if our state representatives did not continue to pass unfunded mandates while lambasting us for considering a tax increase to uphold the quality of life that caused many of us to move here.

Unfunded educational mandates require local funding beyond the state support. For example, a state initiative that calls for one computer per five students in a network environment costs $5 million, with the state providing $2 million. For school maintenance, the state allocates $746,128 to support a $34.3 million budget item, which doesn't even include major renovations. Unlike most other states, Virginia provides no direct funding for construction needs.

While the state has increased its support of education in Virginia Beach, it has been for special state initiatives, not for continuation of existing educational programs nor for development of expansion of programs to meet the specific needs of children and youth in Virginia Beach. When we constantly have to find funds to match state initiatives, local programming cannot be accomplished, or must be done with tax increases.

It is my hope that the School Board and City Council can work together to persuade state representatives of the need to take on their share of the burden for education and, most of all, to ensure that they fund all mandates that they impose on the cities. Surely, they understand that eventually all citizens of Virginia Beach will know the truth - that unfunded mandates are one of the cruelest forms of taxation that we all have to pay.

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu