City Newspaper Archives - 10/2007
POLITICS: FAIR blasted at hearing
Published by Jeremy Moule on Oct 12, 2007
All 17 speakers spoke against the plan and the process by which it was passed. (Democrats received the proposal 90 minutes before the Legislature voted on it. The public learned of the plan an hour before the vote.)
The chief critics were school officials. Brooks' plan cuts their sales-tax revenue in half and they say they'll probably have to make cuts or raise taxes to compensate. They're also sore because the county executive did not discuss her plan with them ahead of time.
"Robbing Peter to pay Paul is not accountable. It's government at its worst," said Kathleen Dillon of Chili, a member of the Churchville-Chili school board.
Dillon said the executive's media campaign for the proposal is "biased and factually incorrect." And her comments - Brooks appeared in front of a Webster elementary school to say school districts are "addicted to taxes" - were inappropriate, Dillon said.
The Alliance for Quality Education and the Webster PTSA are holding a town hall meeting on the FAIR plan on October 30 in Webster, said Rosemary Rivera, a representative of the Alliance.
Gean Kinney of the Genesee Valley PTA said the county executive's claim that districts will be able to make up the lost money through state funding is shortsighted. The state is facing a $4 billion shortfall next year, he said. That, coupled with the higher taxes that are a likely result of the FAIR Plan, he said, means school budgets are likely to be voted down and cuts will have to be made.
"The budget outlook for the next year is gloomy at best," he said.
