No More Taxes for Irvine Schools

* Passing the buck is what the proposed tax increase on the Nov. 2 election in Irvine is all about.

The Irvine City Council got tired of pouring money into the Irvine Unified School District and endorsed a proposed parcel tax increase to get the school district out of its pockets. Instead of implementing administrative reform, both the City Council and the school district decided to pass the buck to the taxpayers.

The City Council has been so concerned about the school district’s mismanagement of its funds that it ordered an audit. Conveniently, the report will not be ready until after the election.

When questioned, the auditor commented that the school district needs to reorganize itself and change its philosophy. He is working on a long-range plan for the school district.

The ballot statement saying the school district would use the money for buzzwords like science, technology, class size reduction and safety is a misrepresentation.

The money would go into the general fund to be used at the administrators’ discretion. The school district already gets money from the state for class size reduction, and student safety is a useful term in today’s news climate.

As to the threats to cut programs, that scare tactic was used last time when the district tried to raise the property tax. They sent schoolchildren home to tell their parents to vote for the tax or music, science and other programs would be cut. The tax increase failed and no classes were cut.

A no vote on Nov. 2 will not result in cuts to any programs. Voting no will give the district a needed incentive to reorganize itself efficiently and prioritize its budget allocations, just as every taxpayer must.

EUNICE CLUCK

Irvine