This commentary is by Ken Fredette of Wallingford.
We have come to an even more unusual place than, well, usual, with public schools taking it squarely on the jaw as the purported challenge to Vermonters being able to remain Vermonters.
I am compelled to try to cut through the smoke and mirrors:
1. Our public schools have not had the benefit of state aid for maintenance/construction needs since a moratorium enacted because of the financial meltdown of 2008. Last I knew, Vermont is the only New England state that has not rescinded that moratorium.
2. More and more tax dollars are being siphoned away from our public schools to support independent schools, which are neither required to employ licensed teachers nor show taxpayers how their dollars are spent. Now on religious schools, some that openly resist any laws prohibiting discrimination against accepting students or hiring staff.
3. Property taxes — both those intended for things like fire, police and medical first responders, as well as those intended for educating our children — are being used for infrastructure improvements that may or may not entice developers to engage in projects that may or may not come to fruition, and return those monies to local coffers decades down the road. Maybe. But property owners still foot the bill for the multimillion-dollar bonds either way.
4. The system to make adjustments to property values based upon recent sales is out of step with reality. With Covid-19 and dramatic climate events driving people of means to seek a safe haven in Vermont, those who have been here for generations see their property values — and the associated taxes — skyrocket though no fault of their own.
5. Finally, anytime I see the word “cap” used in the context of being the salvation of taxpayers, it raises a huge red flag for me. Years ago a governor of Vermont (Jim Douglas) and a future governor of Vermont (then Sen. Peter Shumlin) worked behind closed doors to come to an agreement about capping property taxes, which was, of course, a classic example of the above-mentioned smoke and mirrors. One size does not fit all. The most recent attempt — and I think it was a sincere attempt — to make education funding more equitable was flawed because of the use of a cap.
Politicians can spin tales until the cows come home, but here is one thing that has always been a constant in our state: Education is the only public service defined as necessary in our constitution.
Let me say that again: Education is the only public service spoken to in the Vermont Constitution. There is nothing about roads, nothing about utilities, nothing about anything beyond recognizing the need to educate our children. And rightly so.
So please take the latest call to reel in school spending with an appropriately sized grain of salt. Wrest decisions about funding education away from voters? Nope. Instead, let’s look to ensure our tax dollars are not diverted away from the best hope we all have for a bright future — supporting our children.
