The Ladue School Board has endorsed two propositions that will be in this year’s ballot that directly affect public education in Missouri.
At their regular board meeting, board members voted to endorse both Prop S and Prop B, which will bring tax revenues to the Special School District and to public education in general.
Prop S is a tax levy of 19 cents per $100 assessed valuation that will allow Special School District to renovate facilities and maintain staff after suffering budget cuts over the years. The proposition would raise the district’s tax levy from $1 per $100 assessed valuation to $1.19 per $100.
According to a previous Patch story, if Prop S is approved, funds would go toward technology programs, competitive teacher salaries and $85 million in needed building renovations at seven district buildings located in Ladue, Town and Country, Florissant, Sunset Hills and Crestwood. While the vast majority of the district's students are educated in their home school district, Cary said SSD facilities have largely gone without significant upgrades for between 10-20 years. The largest single upgrade would come at Northview High School in Florissant, which needs $24.5 million to build a new school.
In Ladue, Litzsinger School will undergo four major improvements at a cost of $7 million. The improvements will replace HVAC systems, construct a new gym, add covered bus loading and unloading zones and convert two large areas into a small restroom and storage room.
“They (SDD) serve a lot of students in our school district,” said Susan Dielmann, Ladue School District communications director. “Our students are ultimately beneficiaries of any funds the Special School District has to improve their operation so we would certainly be in favor of that.”
Prop B would raise the cigarette tax by 73 cents, and approximately one-half of the funds generated by the proposal will go to Missouri elementary and secondary schools, according to a memorandum to the school board. Prop B will generate between $283 million to $423 million.
Signs across many gas stations accuse Prop B of raising taxes by 760 percent.
“Yes, it is a tax increase on those who choose to smoke,” said Marsha Chappelow, Ladue Schools superintendent, in a memo to the board. “Yes, it is designed to increase the cost of cigarettes and decrease tobacco use among Missourians. There are 8,600 Missouri kids under the age of 18 who become daily smokers each year.”
Although approximately 90 percent of the Ladue School District’s funding comes from local sources and not the state, the district was supportive of the possible impact on students’ health.
“The health of our students and funding for schools are two important issues to us,” Chappelow said in a statement.
flyoverland
8:28 am on Monday, October 29, 2012
This is an outrageous example of our school board stepping into territory where it doesn't belong, politics. We elect these people to be stewards of our money, not to tell us how to vote. They walk as close to the legal edge when running their own campaigns, now they are overtly telling us how to vote on others. Whether I agree with them, isn't the point. (I am in favor of the cigarette tax, in fact, I think cigarettes should be banned period and question people who don't mind getting their pet projects funded at the expense of others who use a product that might give them cancer), however, this is not their place. if they want to endorse political issues personally, I have no problem. However, when they used the taxpayer's equity to take political positions that may not be held by all taxpayers, that crosses the line.
mjf
6:44 pm on Monday, October 29, 2012
Proponents of Prop 1 sold us on LSD's need to 'serve every student' as justification for why LSD's cost structure is so high vs private schools. They conveniently forgot to mention that LSD farms out the toughest students to the SSD, and now the school board is asking us to pick up an even bigger share of that tab. Is there any kind of tax increase that they wouldn't support?
Joe
10:51 am on Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Prop B is anti-income for the state. Missouri has the most states that border it than any other state. Missouri also has the lowest tobacco taxes of any state. The net affect of this is that surrounding states and their smokers come to Missouri to purchase tobacco products, along with gas, and other items while they are here. The amount of tobacco products sold is far greater than the amount of smokers in Missouri. The present low tax rate set on Missouri tabacco products has set up a cash cow for The State of Missouri tax base and thousands of Missouri businesses. The only affect that Prop B would have is to stop the out of state tabacco users from buying their product in Missouri as well as gas and other items, reducing our tax base. In addition, when smoking is finally snuffed out, we will no longer have a tax base to rely on, which means we will have to increase taxes on something else like property or sales taxes etc. to make up the difference when tobacco brings in no taxes.
Think of it this way, if Missouri gas were $1.00 a gallon less than the surrounding states where do you think those from Kansas City, Kansas, E. St. Louis, Iowa, Arkansas, Oklahoma, etc. are going to buy their gas from and shop while they are in Missouri? Raise gas prices and they all shop back in their home states. Prob B backers failed to to into account this massive amount of revenue that would be lost in their figures.
Voting NO on Prop B is the only smart thing to do.