| Here is the situation:
At the Federal level the current administration has - I'm sure you've heard, but perhaps not benefited from - made steep cuts in income taxes, specifically for wealthy Americans, thus lowering revenues. As we are all well aware, due not to domestic spending to make Americans smarter, safer, or more energy independent, but primarily due to poorly executed, questionably motivated foreign policy decisions - expenses have skyrocketed. Even more alarming at the Federal level than at the state level, this game of voodoo economics has a very troubling remedy; borrowing money to stay afloat. Not only do we mortagage our children's future in this high stakes game national checkbook balancing, but we weaken our leverage with nations such as China and Saudi Arabi, as they are the ones loaning us all this cash and holding the notes on our future. While these nation's may be just as likely to be good neighbors and partners than perhaps not, I am certain this makes everyone as uneasy as it makes me on many levels. We had record surpluses when Mr. Bush took office and these have been quickly converted to record deficits. While we've long heard criticism of "tax and spend", I think we're all now beginning to see the gross fiscal irresponsibility of "borrow and spend" or simply "spend and spend and spend".
At the State level it's a little different. When we do not collect enough income tax revenue to adequately play the appropriate support role for our school districts, local property taxes - a clearly regressive tax - spiral upwards to fill the shortfall. I don't like paying income taxes anymore than the next person, and I expect aggressive improvement in the wasted spending we have long experienced at the state level, Mr. Corzine, but when the Whitman administration fulfilled it's pledge to cut state income taxes by 30%, we all made up the difference in increase property taxes.
Are funding aid formulas the real culprit at the state level? Only if we make the leap of faith to believe that there are school districts in the state that are over-funded. It may not seem fair that certain districts get a larger share of this state aid than others, but to suggest these schools are not in need of this funding to educate our children would be inaccurate. And yes, they are still OUR children even though they live on the other side of the Trenton, or Camden, or Newark city limits.
Why else will I be respectfully disagreeing with the voters who came out last Tuesday? In addition to the regressive system of taxation that has created this problem, we have failed to adequately leverage our economies of scale as municipal governments, resulting in cumbersome duplications of bureaucracies across the state. The finger-pointing needs to end - we must do better for our tax-payers and must do better for our children. I make this statement cognizent of the fact that I - as a municipal office holder - am a part of this problem.
Finally, I will not supporting any cuts simply because our children's eduction is too important. While I intend to hold Mr. Bolandi accountable as much as the next taxpayer, it is his job along with that of the school board to chart our course on this front. I like much of what I see so far, but we have a long way to go. We must allow this process to proceed on the established course. I am making the leap of faith to believe that the voters who came out last Tuesday were making a statement about taxes, due I believe to many of the reason I indicate above. Not because they disagree with the current course of our school district. Perhaps we should finally put our munipal tax increases up for public referendum and allow this dissatisfaction to be more holistically and appropriately directed.
Will another $20, or $30, or $50 per residential tax payer - the amount a cut would likely represent - make a true difference to anyone of us? I believe not and I believe those dollars directed toward educating our children is the overwhelming priority.
This is why I will not be supporting any cuts to this budget. To all of my fellow Council members in Hightstown and East Windsor as well as School Board members - please join me. To all of the parents and residents who feel similary - please contact your local officials and make your voices heard. Together we can make a difference this year.
Patrick Thompson
Hightstown, NJ |
