~ Kennebunk News ~ Kennebunk News

The state has so totally screwed up our own district's figures it isn't comprehensible, even to our business manager. He can't make any of their new figures reconcile to the formula issued last year. Neither can our own numbers guy, who is on the town's school budget liaison board to the selectmen.

The unofficial story is that the state is changing the formula to fit the money they have to spend. Which they aren't supposed to do.

In addition, LD 1 voided the traditional funding formula between the two towns that make up SAD 71. When that happened, our two town boards and school board bartered a transitional funding agreement with the state, which was supposed to carry forward for four years, and ease the shortfalls on the Kennebunk side till the 55% could be achieved.

Surprise - that agreement language turns out to be faulty as well. It gets worse and worse for Kennebunk, and better for the Port over the next four years, instead of what was understood to be the agreement last year.

Now there's a new bill in progress, LD 1953, which will hopefully put the transitional funding agreement language a little straighter, but no guarantees.

Honest to God, is there any end to the LD 1 nightmare?

There is a serious flaw in the EPS formula. On the surface having the funding formula put more emphisis on the number of kids sent to a district instead of the traditional valuation of the towns sounds like the fair way to go. It probably is, but what’s happening in Maine is that we’re developing communities of the rich, (usually around a ski area, lake or other waterfront) who generally have no children and would therefore pay less into the school system. Meanwhile, the towns where the young people can still afford to live are the ones that are going to be taxed the most for the school system. The increase in taxes at the town level increases the cost to live there, and the young lose again. You tell me where it will end.

Also, our school district was told to expect that the figures they were given would be revised, down. My guess is that it’s another ploy to make headlines saying they’re giving XX million more to education, but never actually delivering. Ops normal.

Figures are way off. On top of it Windham is projected to receive approx $10,000 to improve starting teachers salaries. I figure that means Windham has 1.4 new teachers.

I swear, I honestly think the DOE is so screwed up on this one, it's going to take decades to get all the bugs worked out.

I'd go back to the old funding formulas in a heartbeat, if it were possible. LD 1 just keeps on earning that distinctive nickname "Lame Decision One."
:roll:

Remember this is the same group that's slamming the feds for not getting the medicare part d perscription drug benefit down exactly right the frist time.

Thursday, February 16, 2006

SAD 71 cost-sharing plan stalls with little support

By JEN FISH, Portland Press Herald Writer

Copyright © 2006 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.

AUGUSTA — A proposal to alter the cost-sharing formula in Kennebunk and Kennebunkport received little support from state lawmakers Wednesday, but officials from both towns said the debate over who pays what for education is far from over. The two towns that make up School Administrative District 71 share the cost of education through a formula that is based on the enrollment and property valuation of each town.

Rest of the Sad Story

From the news article above:

Kennebunk officials have countered that such a dramatic increase in costs was unforeseen and could have an adverse effect on education in the district.

"UNFORESEEN???" Only if it was deliberate, such as donning the blindfolds and inserting heads between legs. We've been yelling about the coming fiscal Perfect Storm all during 2005, but no, the town insisted on merrily spending millions in surplus dollars, despite our continual warnings.

The loss for Kennebunk is $400K this year, but next year, it's in the millions figure. Add that to the regular old budget increases from cost of goods and services, utilities, and the new contracts.

I will pay the increased tax bills along with everyone else in town, but in the meantime, here's my one allowed miserable comment to all those at Kennebunk town hall who pushed those new spending initiatives, both surplus and other:

WE TOLD YOU SO!!!

Shameless Bumping Division of Rabble Rousing Promotions, Inc.

In destroying the old funding formula, LD 1 has successfully pitted our towns against each other over education dollars. Way to go, Babbidge and Baldacci.

EPS formula puts towns on edge

Kennebunk Post
2/17/06
By Liz Gold
Editor

MSAD 71 school officials addressed concerns on how the state’s school funding formula is rolling out in Kennebunk and Kennebunkport at their regular meeting Monday.

School Board member John Sharood, who also serves as the board’s finance chair and legislative contact, discussed actions on the state level regarding LD 1953, “an act regarding the sharing costs in certain school districts.”

Full Story - look for EPS

Shamesless!

:P

Anything to keep the local voters informed and awake, step right up, step right up!
:mrgreen:

Reasons Babbidge does not deserve re-election in 2006:

* Voted for, and continually endorsed LD1.
* Lobbied for, and obtained questionable paid teaching leave worth approx. $35K in 2004/2005, in addition to his legislative salary and per diems, unlike every one of our former legislators, who paid their own way without complaining.
* Opposes TABOR.
* Never met a town or school spending initiative he didn't support.

More to come - as of this morning, I believe we have a STELLAR candidate who will send Mr. Babbidge back to the classroom fulltime in 2006!!

Babbidge - a man who has done nothing of note other than to aid in Augustas assualt on our tax burden. His so called 50/50 plan to share education cost stinks. His liberal numbness was blinding as he spoke to our selectmen, thinking this plan had any hope of acceptance. Can't he hear the Port people saying - ARE YOU STUPID? We in Kenn. are stuck with this and they are laughing at us as they flip the proverbial bird in our dierction.

This SAD must die.

The Port is indeed flipping our board and town management the bird, and who can blame them? Last year they "gifted" us with a pure million of their new tax relief, to keep Kennebunk residents out of the financial hole.

Did the school district build one of the two new ultra-expensive schools in the Port; which would have been the fair and equitable thing to do, replacing Consolidated School, which badly needs it?
No.

Did the Port see our selectmen and administration acknowledge and carefully weigh the coming education funding requirements, and tuck that new $1.6M "surplus" away for later use?
No.

Did they see our fire department ask for and receive a modest new facility, for perhaps $800K, instead of $2M+?
No.

Did they see our town manager agree to sell Park St. school, adding it to the town tax rolls, and avoid another multi-million dollar spending renovation spree?
No.

When the Port looks at Kennebunk, they don't see efforts to be fiscally conservative, or to rein in rising costs, or to table extravagant projects. All they see is new spending initiative after cash outlay after expensive municipal project. Why should the Port bail us out this time?
I certainly wouldn't.

Obviously you did not read the editorials today in the papers stating that LD#1 is working and just a few people refuse to admit it.

Tony

Oh, Tony, I know. All my life, people have said how stubborn I am, and how my refusal to kow-tow to the going party line sets me back in life.

I just find myself continually unable to buy the BS, no matter how hard I try, and no matter how many 12-step "Learn to Like Lying" programs I've done. Shame on me!
:wink:

I do not believe we should be trying to run the town on a shoe string so our beloved SAD can have a budget triple that of town hall. You want budget restraint, go see how much you can get from the school board. How much did they save us on those two buildings? One building would have been sufficient if constructed properly.

And why is the Port looking at land for a new building, why not use the land where Consolidated is? To close to town? Cousins School was sold and will generate tax revunue. As for Park Street, I'm not so sure giving it up is the right thing to do.

Anyway, its gonna get alot uglier around here in the months to come

1) The question on Consolidated has been asked many times before. The land where Consolidated sits is not large enough to allow a new school, as the old school is grandfathered. The useable portion of the land isn't large enough to allow a replacement school that would meet current building and parking requirement codes. Even the fields in use at Consolidated now are not owned by the school. They were gifted to the town years ago, with very severe restrictions as to their use. In addition, they are too wet to support a building. If it were replaced, it would have to be in a different location. This was established years ago.

2) Nobody's asking the town to run its budgets on a "shoestring." Please. The real town increase over the last two years - including surplus - is 36%. (2003/04 - 2004/05). Ask Ed Geoghan if you don't believe me. Tell me what part of a 36% increase sounds like a skeleton budget to you.

3) Because (as you know) we did hammer on the school district for five years, they have done a better job reining in their budgets over the last two years (finally). What happens then? The town steps up to fill their shoes as the new big spender. Whether it's a multi-million community center, a fire station that could have cost far less, doing town work on a state-owned road, or the new proposed Town Hall Taj Mahal Two, there is no end to the spending initiatives.

4) Keeping Park St. School with a price tag of $1.9M in renovations (Brian Costello said it, so it must be true) so that the parks and rec department can have their longed-for community center, and the "social services entitlement department" can bring in six new agencies from out of town, who will then want all kinds of new town monies for their support, is not my idea of fiscal prudence.

Park St., which the district abandoned because it's a mess of mold, asbestos and spiders, should be sold. No way should the town take on that building. If it were worth keeping, believe me, the district would have kept it, and it would be a Performing Arts Center by now.

Park St. should be sold for professional office space or high-end condos, which is more in line with what the neighborhood wants than affordable housing. The paltry amount of annual tax revenues coming in from the new Cousens School housing project (when they get it built) won't be enough to pay for six months' worth of interest on the new fire station.

Naran, it's time to move to Kossuth.

D

Which one? I can't stand latkes, and I am allergic to Iowa winters.
:wink:

Meanwhile that was a nice picture of you at the Chocalate whatever it was.

Thanks, Al. That was the Chocolate Extravaganza, a charity event held every year to raise money for various issues or agencies. We had a lot of fun at our table, and raised some good money for heating help.

Here's the latest word on next year's property tax dollar increase for Kennebunk:

You can find last year's figures on your town tax bill.

Take last year's school portion, and multiply it by 8.2%.
Take last year's town portion, and multiply it by 15%.
The county portion will likely stay the same, or we might see a small reduction.

These figures will give you a reasonable approximation of what your new tax bill will look like for 2006/2007, if both town and school budgets pass, along with everything over the cap.

Hint - the Kennebunk assessor is pushing for another property revaluation in 2007, because he now has the software, and he wants to keep us close to 100%. Currently, he says we're already down to 82%. The state requires 70%, but he's already anxious to do more than the spot revals done in 2005 (without any prior public notice, of course).

Unfortunately, unlike the Port, we may not get a vote on whether we would like another revaluation. The issue is being researched.

MSAD 71 funding change proposed

By Jim Kanak
jkanak@seacoastonline.com

KENNEBUNK — State Rep. Chris Babbidge of Kennebunk is urging a change to the school-funding formula that was put in place in January 2005 for MSAD 71. The formula determined how the requirements of LD1, the governor’s tax bill in 2005, and LD 1924, the Essential Programs and Services legislation of 2004, would be implemented in the school district.

Full Story

Babbidge voted for LD 1, he endorsed it to the district and the town when it was enacted,, and now he wants them to cut us a special deal? Why? Isn't LD 1 supposedly working just fine, according to the Democratic leadership, Baldacci, and the media?

The Port is not going to budge this time. From the news article above:

“I would be reluctant to go along with any change that would have the Port paying an exorbitant share of school costs,” Fiske said. “It isn’t easy being faced with major changes by one town that would jeopardize the agreement.”

50/50 school funding plan fails

By Jim Kanak
jkanak@seacoastonline.com

KENNEBUNK — The process to determine the school finding formula for MSAD71 continued during the past week, as the state Legislature took a couple of actions that affected the situation.
On Feb. 15, the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee killed an amendment filed by Rep. Chris Babbidge that would have changed the MSAD71 formula to permanently make it based 50 percent on property valuation and 50 percent on each town’s pupil count.

Full Story:
http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/yorkstar/02232006/news/89309.htm

Gladly, the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee did the right thing and opposed this amendment. As Naran stated earlier, the correct way for Kennebunk to offset the increase in their share of the SAD 71 budget is to curb spending! Too bad Chris Babbidge doesn't have a plan for that!

Kristi, that's against his religion.
:wink:

I knew this would be the outcome. The state would have only conceded if the Port had been in agreement with Kennebunk. And no way was that going to happen.

From the news article linked above:

Well, how generous and magnanimous of you, Mr. Babbidge, considering YOU helped create the problem in the first place!! But please, carry on!
:roll:

(and ps - "next term" may be questionable. Don't bet the grocery money).

Coming soon from the Great State Of Maine a new product. This product is a detergent that can be used in any washing machine. The name for the made in Maine detergent is LIDE. It is available at any government office for a nominal fee. Simply put the documents you want in to the washer and add one cup of the fresh smelling powder. Let the machine do the rest. After the last spin cycle the figures are yours to do with what you want. Here today gone tomorrow. This new product has been proven to work in test trials for the last 3 years without failure

Bob :D :D

Kristi - nice job on your comments at the Port selectmen's meeting this week!

The combined board meeting (school board and both boards of selectmen) has finally been set for March 2nd at 7:00, in the Port firestation meeting room. But I hear no public comment or questions will be allowed. They're billing it as a board workshop. The meeting will be televised.

Should be interesting to watch the dynamics unfold in public (all those with spare fire extinguishers, please bring them along. No IED's allowed). :wink:

Another note of interest - the meeting with Jim Rier in Augusta yesterday to discuss (again) Kennebunk's request for relief saw the notable absence of Mr. Babbidge. Where O Where could he have been?

I thought his last media column stated he would leave no pebble unturned in his quest for Justice in Kennebunk.
:roll:

By Liz Gold
Editor
Kennebunk Post
2/24/06

Kennebunk selectmen and members of the town’s budget board finished up their budget meetings on Thursday, Feb. 16, rolling through leftover items from previous meetings and focusing on capital projects over and under the town’s spending cap.

Before launching into the proposed budget’s capital items, discussion generated on how much to spend on the town’s geraniums. Members of the downtown committee proposed $3,000 for the flowers, igniting opinions from budget board/select board members.

Look for Kennebunk Story on Budget

There was an excellent article on the budget in this week's Journal Tribune, as well; unfortunately not online.

So - let me get this straight. I was there; they spent at least half an hour debating $3,000 for geraniums; for the second time, mind you. But my gosh, that $840,100 for 71 employees' health insurance?? Why, we simply have no choice, don't you know. We can't possibly require even another 1% in contributions, which would make almost three times the Posy Price Tag.
:roll:

Talk about worrying the pennies when the dollars are rolling down the sieve.