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Rensselaer County Taxpayers Association

November 1996                                                                                                                                                     Volume 1, Number 4

Hi! We’re still with you. The truth will make us free.

Last week a federal court ruled that the Immigration and Naturalization Service could not deport or refuse entry into the US to a person who is suffering from HIV infection or AIDS on the grounds that they could not get proper care and would be subject to ridicule and discrimination in their native country.

After one year in this country immigrants may be granted permanent resident status and are also eligible for free medical care and all benefits which you the citizens thought were bonuses which you enjoyed for being Americans.

Think of what will happen to immigration and medical and public assistance costs in this country when word gets around the world that anyone who is infected by HIV has a right to enter the US and receive hundreds of thousands of dollars of free medical care.

This policy was recommended by the Clinton administration appointed AIDS advisory council. There obviously is no limit to the new and creative ways to spend our money that can be imagined by liberal oriented government officials and judges.

In a recent article in the Times Union, the State Comptroller, H. Carl McCall, called for reform of the state school property tax system which funds local school districts.

Many people agree with the Comptroller that the system needs to be fixed. Some people think the school property tax system should be replaced with an income tax or other tax, the idea behind this being that it would be more fair. In the Times Union article McCall called for fixing the school property tax problem through periodic re-assessments and the use of a credit in the New York income tax to possibly offset paying too much school property tax.

McCall also called for a commission to revise the state aid formula which funnels tax money to the local schools.

If you have a better idea, write to your state Assemblyman or Senator. Politicians respond to constituent pressure. One local representative in the State Senate is Senator Bruno. His address is Senator Joseph Bruno, Legislative Office Building, Albany, New York 12248. Assemblyman Canestrari has the following address: Assemblyman Ronald Canestrari, 33 2^nd Street, Troy, New York 12180. Let them know how you feel concerning the school property tax.

Some people think that spending public money on private schools leaves less money for public schools.

The flaw in this thinking is that school choice does not create students out of thin air. When a parent spends a tuition voucher on a private school, which educates children at half the cost of a public school, it leaves more per pupil revenue, not less, for use by public schools. Let’s say for instance there are 1,000 students in a district that spends $10,000 per pupil for a total budget of $10 million. Giving vouchers of $5,000 to 100 of those students to leave a crowded public school may alleviate the need for an expensive building project. Plus, the revenue left for the remaining 900 public school students would be $9.5 million or $10,555 per pupil - an increase of $555 per pupil.

According to an October 8^th Wall Street Journal editorial:

"The extent to which public schools are usurping parental rights is illustrated by a Texas case in which a child was questioned by child protection officials without his parents’ knowledge. During the interrogation, he was forced to strip so a female worker could examine him for signs of paddling. The child’s family sued. In finding for the district, Federal District Judge Melinda Harmon ruled that "parents give up their rights when they drop the children off at public school." "

According to the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) as a service to members, NFIB has researched the public statements and actions of our two leading presidential contenders. Here’s what they found:

1. Reducing government regulations across the board. - Clinton: No, Dole: Yes.
1. Requiring federal agencies to sunset and re-examine all regulations every five years, before Congress can authorize their continuation. - Clinton: No, Dole: Yes.
2. Enacting a law compensating property owners when the government takes actions to devaluate their land. - Clinton: No, Dole: Yes.
3. Repeal the Davis-Bacon Act. - Clinton: No, Dole: Yes.

According to Cal Thomas in a recent Times Union article:

"Chrysler Corporation President Robert Lutz in a speech to the governor’s "education summit" in Michigan, said, it is time to stop fooling ourselves about government schools. They are not doing the job the taxpayers are paying for and are unlikely to improve unless education follows the example of business and engages in competition.

Standardized tests in Michigan show 40 percent of fourth-graders failed to get acceptable scores in reading. Unsatisfactory achievement in math was recorded among many of the state’s seventh-graders. To his credit, Lutz is participating in forming the Alliance for Children’s Education, which will send volunteers into Michigan schools in an effort to tutor underachievers. But in his speech, he said that tutoring is not enough.

Just as the goal of automaking is to produce good cars at competitive prices, so, too, is the goal of education to produce people with the knowledge and skills to succeed in an increasingly competitive world. Does it make sense, he wondered, that virtually everything else, including the once-monopolistic phone company, is competitive and our public schools are not? Competition is the core process in the natural order of things."

In a Wall Street Journal editorial August 26^th, this article concerning deteriorating public schools says:

"There are signs that teachers themselves are becoming skeptical of their leadership’s priorities. Internal union surveys of younger teachers find them dubious of union involvement with politics and more interested in services designed to improve teaching. Some 40% of teachers routinely vote Republican in national elections, yet virtually all of the National Education Association’s political contributions went to Democrats in 1994. Shocked by the GOP takeover of Congress, the NEA showed up at the Republican convention in San Diego to make soundings.

In an October 1996 edition of the VFW magazine, a special article shows photos of Bob Dole, Jack Kemp and General Powell at the Republican Convention. A smaller picture of Vice President Al Gore is shown addressing a democratic business session. Al Gore served as an Army "Newspaper Reporter" not as a combatant. President Clinton did not appear in the magazine.

The bumper sticker read: IF YOU THINK EDUCATION IS EXPENSIVE, TRY IGNORANCE" This bumper sticker is directed at the many people who complain about school taxes, however, people who do so aren’t complaining about public education. They are complaining about public schools, the ones which have a monopoly on funding via taxes. The teachers are great, however, the administration, state bureaucracy and organized labor are the problem. It’s unfortunate that today’s Educrats, insist on confusing public schools and public education. They often do so to put critics in a negative light, as in this very typical quote by Shirley Igo, National PTA vice president for legislation: "I’m not sure this [school choice] is parent driven. I think it’s a political issue aimed at undermining public education." [emphasis added]

Ms. Igo, like everyone else who is critical of school choice, is truly guilty of politicizing public education. Our current system of funding public schools, as developed by Horace Mann and his allies, have truly been guilty of undermining public education since its inception.

One reason public school choice was not made available when compulsory public education was originally conceived, was that it was not practical. How would parents get their children to the school of their choice when there was generally only one school available within a day’s walk? Now that we have modern transportation, isn’t it about time to admit that Mann’s opponents were right?

Let’s put a MAN in the White House who puts children ahead of politics.

Any time you hand a politician a tax $ they will come up with a thousand reasons why they need $2.
Schodack Resident

Corruption is not a way of life for anyone in public office and the sooner we get rid of it the better
Nassau Resident

What we need is more arterials, more traffic jams and more parking privileges for the "in" crowd in Albany.
Rensselaer Resident

Where can we find a good bakery?
East Greenbush Housewife

People you’d like to choke with your bare hands: The guy who invented wire coat hangers; The person who says, "Well, looks like we’re in for a long winter"; "Gee, you missed the lottery by one number"; "You should’a got here earlier, we just ran out of homemade apple pie"; "only 45 days ‘til Christmas"; "Now, just vote for me and we’ll look into it."
East Greenbush Resident

People you can surely trust: The "expert" handyman, giving an estimate, "Well, don’t know what we’re gonna run into." A used car salesman who says "This car was traded in by a little old lady who never drove over 40 miles an hour."
Schodack Resident

There have been many car accidents at the intersection of routes 9 & 20 and Schuurmann Road in recent years. One thing, to correct this bad situation is to install a green left turn arrow coming out of Schuurmann Road and also a green arrow turning left into Schuurmann Road from the south.
Schodack Businessman

Be sure to vote on November 5^th - call at least two other voters and ask them to vote and call two more. Lets get a voter pyramid at work to be sure democracy is at work and represents the will of all the people and not special interest groups.
East Greenbush Resident

The pending budget for East Greenbush is a 2.7% increase. A previous budget was a 14% increase. Not to be outdone, it’s now Schodack’s turn to gouge the public with a 14% increase. How is it that other townships have had decreases in taxes? Saratoga County is a good example. Saratoga County operates with a surplus yet Rensselaer County has a loss.
Schodack Resident

Coming Attractions

There will be a special meeting of the Southern Rensselaer County Taxpayers Association on November 8^th at 7:15 pm at the Schodack Town Hall. The public is invited to attend. We would like to hear your comments.