Post by Chris_Wendt on Jan 11, 2009 8:27:39 GMT -5
The holiday hiatus was certainly understandable, we all had appropriately much more important things to attend in December.
The new year has broken forth, we are about to witness the historical inauguration of our new president who comes to office facing some of the most serious problems our nation may have ever faced...armed only with hope, an ardent fervor for something he calls ""change"", a clear speaking voice, and a good stage presence. Our new president assumes the leadership of the United States of America as our Chief Executive Officer, with perhaps the least amount of executive experience and qualifications of any elected president in history. This spectre has me quite a bit down, especially when viewed against the backdrop of Wall Street, of what is left of the Global Economy, of the boil-over of tensions in and around Israel, and the simmering stew pot of Soviet thinking going on in Russia, as their national economy and their democracy both race one another toward oblivion.
Here, NY State has declared what amounts to financial disaster and warns of cuts and new and higher taxes. Our State Legislature, meaning, our state legislators, who stared this bleak situation in the face with an attitude of cavalier denial in November and December will now have to deal with it in the flesh, so to speak, between now and April 1, should they decide to pass a State Budget as required by law as of that date. (I suspect the prospects will become so dire before April 1 that they will take a pass rather than pass a budget, rather than really kill the prospects for all 704 NY State school districts who must pass school budgets in May...thus allowing or facilitating each of those 704 school boards to make whatever they consider to be "educated guesses" at their eventual state aid, and, to budget accordingly, meaning using as rosey an outlook as each individual school district's board of education cares to take in order to pass their budgets before the nasty actual state aid numbers are passed down from Albany). (But, I could be wrong about this...)
Closer to home, Nassau County has realized a $40 Million shortfall in sales tax receipts, which you may rightly recognize to be an absolute financial disaster for our county. What is NOT getting the news media play, yet, is a serious and mounting increase in the number and amount of Nassau residents and businesses NOT paying some, any, or all of their property taxes. The County is technically on the hook to school districts for the full amount of our tax levy, and to the extent the County has or can borrow cash to cover the shortfall in actual property tax receipts, they will probably pay Wantagh the full amount of this essential part of our revenue. However, if the shortfall is too large, and/or the County's general fiscal condition continues to deteriorate (continued loss of sale tax revenue), it is not beyond conception that the County could find itself unable to borrow cash to redeem our total tax levy.
Another very, very likely result of this year's County financial problems will be a change in the law which would relieve Nassau County of the responsibility to 'make-up' shortages in property tax receipts for school districts, placing a new burden on Wantagh to have to deal with that problem on our own, so to speak, in the future. (Nassau is unique in this situation, currently, with perhaps one other county in the state also required to 'make good' to school districts for shortages in property tax receipts.)
Right here in Wantagh, the barber shop, the deli, the public library, the post office, and the railroad cars are all abuzz about a change in school district leadership...but we, here, are...All Quiet on the Western Front. Wow. (Without exclamation point...)
This is understandable, to a degree. Right here and now, with talk of school district administrative consolidation abounding in the media, Wantagh is presented with the next best opportunity for the President of our school board to pick up the phone and schedule a meeting with his counterpart in Seaford to discuss the possibility of Seaford and Wanagh sharing the services of the incumbent Searford Superintendent and splitting the cost 50-50, or even using some other palatible formula to pro-rate the cost, like number of students, or the number of school buildings, or, which football team beats the other for how many seasons!
Of course, if NOBODY but me mentions this possibility, or sees any opportunity in saving half of a quarter-million-plus dollar adminstrative position, then NOTHING will ever come of it. We'll see.
Goldilocks went to Disney World over the holidays along with Glinda. Goldilocks fell in love with the place, and took a temporary job in the Biergarten at Epcot until later this coming Spring. She sends her regards to all. Glinda returned to wrap-up her business with the school district, who should be receiving her official "regards", in writing, from her boss, very soon.
I hope we can get some conversation started about...anything, any time now...
Regards,
Chris Wendt
The new year has broken forth, we are about to witness the historical inauguration of our new president who comes to office facing some of the most serious problems our nation may have ever faced...armed only with hope, an ardent fervor for something he calls ""change"", a clear speaking voice, and a good stage presence. Our new president assumes the leadership of the United States of America as our Chief Executive Officer, with perhaps the least amount of executive experience and qualifications of any elected president in history. This spectre has me quite a bit down, especially when viewed against the backdrop of Wall Street, of what is left of the Global Economy, of the boil-over of tensions in and around Israel, and the simmering stew pot of Soviet thinking going on in Russia, as their national economy and their democracy both race one another toward oblivion.
Here, NY State has declared what amounts to financial disaster and warns of cuts and new and higher taxes. Our State Legislature, meaning, our state legislators, who stared this bleak situation in the face with an attitude of cavalier denial in November and December will now have to deal with it in the flesh, so to speak, between now and April 1, should they decide to pass a State Budget as required by law as of that date. (I suspect the prospects will become so dire before April 1 that they will take a pass rather than pass a budget, rather than really kill the prospects for all 704 NY State school districts who must pass school budgets in May...thus allowing or facilitating each of those 704 school boards to make whatever they consider to be "educated guesses" at their eventual state aid, and, to budget accordingly, meaning using as rosey an outlook as each individual school district's board of education cares to take in order to pass their budgets before the nasty actual state aid numbers are passed down from Albany). (But, I could be wrong about this...)
Closer to home, Nassau County has realized a $40 Million shortfall in sales tax receipts, which you may rightly recognize to be an absolute financial disaster for our county. What is NOT getting the news media play, yet, is a serious and mounting increase in the number and amount of Nassau residents and businesses NOT paying some, any, or all of their property taxes. The County is technically on the hook to school districts for the full amount of our tax levy, and to the extent the County has or can borrow cash to cover the shortfall in actual property tax receipts, they will probably pay Wantagh the full amount of this essential part of our revenue. However, if the shortfall is too large, and/or the County's general fiscal condition continues to deteriorate (continued loss of sale tax revenue), it is not beyond conception that the County could find itself unable to borrow cash to redeem our total tax levy.
Another very, very likely result of this year's County financial problems will be a change in the law which would relieve Nassau County of the responsibility to 'make-up' shortages in property tax receipts for school districts, placing a new burden on Wantagh to have to deal with that problem on our own, so to speak, in the future. (Nassau is unique in this situation, currently, with perhaps one other county in the state also required to 'make good' to school districts for shortages in property tax receipts.)
Right here in Wantagh, the barber shop, the deli, the public library, the post office, and the railroad cars are all abuzz about a change in school district leadership...but we, here, are...All Quiet on the Western Front. Wow. (Without exclamation point...)
This is understandable, to a degree. Right here and now, with talk of school district administrative consolidation abounding in the media, Wantagh is presented with the next best opportunity for the President of our school board to pick up the phone and schedule a meeting with his counterpart in Seaford to discuss the possibility of Seaford and Wanagh sharing the services of the incumbent Searford Superintendent and splitting the cost 50-50, or even using some other palatible formula to pro-rate the cost, like number of students, or the number of school buildings, or, which football team beats the other for how many seasons!
Of course, if NOBODY but me mentions this possibility, or sees any opportunity in saving half of a quarter-million-plus dollar adminstrative position, then NOTHING will ever come of it. We'll see.
Goldilocks went to Disney World over the holidays along with Glinda. Goldilocks fell in love with the place, and took a temporary job in the Biergarten at Epcot until later this coming Spring. She sends her regards to all. Glinda returned to wrap-up her business with the school district, who should be receiving her official "regards", in writing, from her boss, very soon.
I hope we can get some conversation started about...anything, any time now...
Regards,
Chris Wendt
