JM editorial excerpt:
There was a time when registering children for school involved a little more than paperwork. Today, the paperwork remains, but now includes painful check writing for assorted fees that in some cases cost families hundreds of dollars, and school districts a large measure of goodwill.
Well, isn’t that special. The Republican agenda for the past 12 years has been based on changing what they believe is the redistribution of their wealth, while attempting to spread economic responsibility among those they view as lazy. Tax cuts for the extremely wealthy during war-time and the so-called responsibility platform have forced domestic program cuts across the board. Local governments have no choice but to create point-of-use fees OR raise taxes and risk being labeled as the bad guys. For the wealthy few, Federal income taxes have gone down, while local taxes disguised as fees, tolls and dues for the poor majority have gone up. All the while Republicans view the solution to their defunding as a good reason to cut costs and spending even further.
Without Federal aid for schools, roads or healthcare, and combined with our politicians deliberate failure to earmark funds for the people who need it most, local communities had better get used to the idea of voting tax increases onto themselves. The push for local entities to gain more control of their own destiny is part of the Republicans plan for locals to pay their own way without Federal help. An impossibility for 90% of American communities.
7 comments:
Through program consolidation and new flexibility, No Child Left Behind allows local communities and school districts greater discretion in using federal funds while demanding accountability for how taxpayer money is spent. Since 2001 this administration has increased spending on elementary & secondary education increased by 41%. Title 1 funding for disadvantaged students is up 45% and funding for the reading first program has quadrupled. Doesn't look to me like the federal government is getting cut. It appears that at the local levels the federal funds are being spent carelessly. I have two children in highschool and the check writing was very painful. I'm not going to blame the administration for fees at the highschools though. I'm not going to blame the president for the $50 parking pass I had to pay for my daughter. I'm not going to blame the president for the $90 for the yearbooks we had to have. It's foolish to place the blame on the republicans for the local school fees. There have always been fees even thirteen years ago. The fact is there will always be fees. I would rather pay the fees for my childrens education before my elderly neighbor has to pay for my childrens education through higher taxes. For a person to have a child they are expected to pay for the childs education. They know it's going to cost money to raise a child. It's called personal responsibility. The president has risen the child credit to $1000 up from $500. Which helps families and the costs associated with raising children. I recieved a tax-cut and I am far from being "rich". If it wasn't for the rich people we wouldn't have much of anything since the top 1% of wage earners pay 80% of all taxes.
Low- and middle-income families that are subject to local tax increases, higher fees and service cuts will, in essence, be paying for the very generous federal tax cuts for the highest-income Americans, a direct result of the Bush sponsored Republican endorsed taxcuts. Democrats voted unanimously against the taxcuts for the wealthy.
EFFECTS OF FEDERAL POLICIES ON STATE BUDGETS
Since the Bush administration has inceased Federal funding to K12 by 41%, why would school fees go up? Why would your elderly neighbors taxes go up? Oh, thats right, its being misspent, though you say NCLB demands accountability.
One other thing I will never ever understand are people like you who accept their second class place in society. "If it wasn't for the rich people we wouldn't have much of anything". Those poor abused rich people.
Most low income families can get reduced fees from the schools. There are a ton of programs for low income families in the schools.
High school kid DRIVES to school, parent pays parking fee. I don't think anon is struggling like other parents.
Louis says that our elderly neighbors are paying higher property taxes and saying that is the federal government is to blame. Since when has the federal government responsible for local property taxes? Since when are poor people the majority?
I never said the federal government is to blame for high property tax.
However, I believe the rise and fall of all local taxes, property taxes included is related to some extent to the federal governments "generosity" towards the states, regardless of the persons income or age. The effects Federal defunding has on our local programs is tremendous and spelled out at www.cbpp.org
Poor working class people have been the majority since the beginning of time. Anonymous 1:16 PM said 80% of our taxes are paid by 1% of the population, I think its more like 3% or 4%, but that's a majority to you? You must be confusing whats left of the shrinking middle class as rich, clearly they are part of the poor working class majority.
You are questioning my impression of the population sizes of the economic/social classes while implying the rich are the majority? Interesting.
To rich people, working class people are not the poor, theyre the middleclass.
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