Let me start by saying that, in theory, there need never be a tax increase for education – ever. Here is why. With assessed evaluations climbing, and new homes, condos and rehabilitation taking place, the base upon which we tax citizens for schools grows on its own. This growth alone should be enough to fund education.

Now, we all know about the overly complex (intentionally complex – I might add) property tax system in Illinois. We also know that the district no doubt has numerous answers as to why they need to increase our taxes. The fact remains, however, that any spending (particularly in a rich suburb like River Forest) that exceeds inflation plus population growth is entirely unnecessary.

So what drives our spending? We all know the answer, though we do our best to convince ourselves otherwise. Bureaucracy and political clout drive the spending, and this drive to spend is no different here in River Forest than it is in any other "Franchise" of the massive Education Industry.

While this industry does all it can to hide its power and clout under the guise of "Education", the facts show that education is a mere pretense. The goal is ever-larger staffing needs, along with ever increasing salaries, combined with ever richer fringe benefits. (pensions in particular)

I wish I had the time to show you how virtually each and every law, from the stifling state mandates to text book and curricula purchasing decisions, are driven by a network of rules, laws, regulations, all promoted by powerful and connected political interests to increase spending. But I don’t.

So let me focus on River Forest. I want to focus on 3 things that every tax payer should know.

1 is Compensation Expense, 2 is Hidden Tax increases, and 3 is the outright fleecing of the taxpayers through loopholes in the PTELL law.

1. Our newspapers tell us that River Forest has kept salary increases to under 4%. This is a misstatement of fact. Compensation increases (not even including fringe benefits like health care costs) are hidden in areas that aren't covered by salary.

In River Forest, the increases for instruction alone have been 10.4, 5.14, 7.16, 4.71, 6.67, and 8.21 % respectively for the last 7 years. More on where that all went in a moment.

2. Our newspapers tell us that River Forest hasn't had a tax increase in since 1998. Yet this little item appeared in the Sept. 21 Forest Leaves.

In its 2005-06 budget, unanimously adopted by the board Monday, the district plans to spend about $19.1 million and faces a deficit of about $2.6 million.

The remainder will come out of operating fund balances, which came to about $8.7 million at the end of last fiscal year. Most of that is in the working cash fund, bolstered last school year through a $7 million bond sale.

One of the more interesting things I've discovered in my years researching public education is that here in Illinois, the "Working Cash Fund" is a neat little end run around the tax cap. Interest paid on these bonds are not subject to the tax cap, and Districts often do not pay back the bonds. When new funds are raised, those taxes necessary to fund them are outside the tax cap. Though I don't know all the details of the practices in River Forest regarding the working cash fund, the fact that the spending levels have exceeded 5% and or the rate of inflation for many of the last few years indicate that there may have been hidden tax increases using the working cash fund schemes used by other districts.

3. By now many of you are aware that there are serious problems with the tax cap law. There exist schemes that allow districts to use a combination of loopholes to extract far more money out of taxpayers than voters approved. These tricks have to do with a combination of playing with fund balances and phasing tax increases in over various years. These loopholes have NOT been closed, and when you take into account the political clout of the giant education industry, you can probably bet that they will open a few new loopholes for every one they close.

For these reasons alone, school districts don't deserve the tax increases they are asking for, here, or elsewhere.
Now, we are told that the school district will be running a deep deficit if they don't get this money. I have a few suggestions. First, when I'm running a deficit, I don’t have the luxury of increasing my client’s prices. I have competition. No, when I run a deficit, I have to cut spending, and I suggest District 90 do the same.

It is my understanding that the teacher’s contract is up in 2007, is that correct? Here is a novel suggestion. Tell the teachers that the taxpayers have paid enough, and you will no longer abuse them.
Tell everyone – not just the teachers – the end-of-career bonuses are things that the taxpayers will no longer stand for, particularly now that the new law no longer allows districts to foist unsustainable pension liabilities upon the state (which – did I mention?) is bankrupt to the tune of about $40 billion.

Cut staff, cut salary growth, and cut spending – and please stop hiding behind the "it's all mandated" canard. Every union, Association of Superintendents, and Association of School Boards has gone to Springfield to lobby for these mandates for the express purpose of increasing spending.

It is time to reverse the spending ratchet.
___

In closing, I’d like to play the part of the boy who told the people that the emperor had no clothes. It is time to tell the people that high spending does not give us a high quality education. To the extent that River Forest has good results, it is mostly a result of the socioeconomic status of the people who live here. If we bussed Maywood Children here and RF kids to Maywood, the test results would barely budge.

It is time for the people of River Forest (and the rest of the nation I might add) to understand that there is point of diminishing returns. That point comes when you stop funding the connection of neurons in your child's head (which shouldn't be that expensive) and start on to funding a massive spending bureaucracy driven by political clout, political protection, and protection from competition. We are way beyond the point of rational spending in Illinois wealthy suburbs.

It is time to Fund Children, not bureaucrats and bureaucracies.