Opinion: Levy Elections, Opportunities of a Republic - East Idaho News
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Opinion: Levy Elections, Opportunities of a Republic

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(Political Columnist Mark Richardson)

Another round of school bonds and levies have been presented for public approval and, as typical, received a mixed reception.

Requests from the school boards have been greeted with everything from enthusiasm to groans and protests at the prospect of another slice of the public funding being seized.

Overall, voters have been kind, approving more than $1 billion in additional funding over the eight years of the Otter Administration. However, many in the education community have referred to the levies as a form of neglect, deriding the state legislature as contemptuous and uncaring.

But, maybe we need to step back and analyze our predicament from a different vantage point.

In Idaho, 93 of the 115 school districts rely on voter-approved supplemental property tax levies to cover the operational cost of their schools. This year, the cost statewide amounts to more than $180 million.

That may appear as a huge number. And it is, but educational insiders and the media have assigned blame to lawmakers for creating the necessity. They insist districts should not be fitted with the burden of selling “capital reinvestment” to fund schools.

Nor do they believe patrons should be placed in a situation where they need to choose whether to accept or reject the petition.

However, is that really all this amounts too? Is this just a tug-of-war over who gets to appropriate your hard earned dollars?

It is the responsibility of the taxpayers to assess whether their taxes are being profitably invested. Bond and levy elections are just one way to voice our approval or opposition.

We have argued on the national and state level that educational jurisdiction needs to be maintained on the local level. But are we ready to stand up and take it?

Voting statistics say otherwise. In the Pocatello/Chubbuck levy election only 13.6 percent of registered voters made it to the polls.

Even in the hotly debated bond in Bonneville district #93, only about a third, 36 percent, cast a vote in deciding whether to build a new high school or not.

Such a small minority of registered voters indicates a vast amount of apathy. A disregard for our basic responsibilities calls for greater government intervention rather than more autonomy.

I believe these elections are not a determination of the legislatures disregard for education. Nor are they a burden upon the electorate to choose whether to provide additional funding to the schools.

They are exactly what we asked for, local jurisdiction. This is where the electorate steps to the plate and determines whether the funding is necessary or extravagant.

The U. S. Department of Education reports that, in Idaho, a mere 22.7 percent of educational dollars were funded directly from the taxpayers – fifth lowest in the nation. The national average is 43.3 percent.

We tout the importance of local control, maybe we ought to appreciate the rare occasions we have to participate.

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