04-22-1987 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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TO: MEMORANDUM April 13, 1987 Members of the School Board Roseville Education Association Roseville Federation of Teachers PTA Coordinating Council PTA Presidents AFSCME Clerical Unit Operating Engineers Local No. 70 Roseville Principals' Association Other Bargaining Groups Chamber of Commerce District Center Administrator Staffs Roseville /Falcon Heights Chamber of Commerce APR 15 1987 CITY OF LITTLE CANADA Mayor /City Council of Maplewood Mayor /City Council of Shoreview Mayor /City Council of Arden Hills Mayor /City Council of Roseville Mayor /City Council of Little Canada Mayor /City Council of Falcon Heights Mayor /City Council of Lauderdale Little Canada /Vadnais Heights FROM: Roger Worner, Superintendent of Schools SUBJECT: Senate Bill 583: Senate Omnibus Education Bill I am writing to you on a critically urgent matter - Senate File 583, the Senate Omnibus Education Bill. The bill - if approved - will have devastating financial consequences for the Roseville Area Schools and most other Metro area school districts. Senate File 583 is being touted as a bill which will take monumental steps in the State of Minnesota to achieve "educational program equity." In the main, that "hoped -for equity" will be achieved by imposing heavy taxes on most Metro area school districts - which are either stable or declining in enrollment - and redistributing the acquired funds through the state aid program to larger, growing Metro area districts and rural school districts. In some cases, not only will select school district patrons be taxed more heavily but they will also lose dollars on the foundation aid formula. That is, if Senate File 583 is implemented as written, some districts will receive less money than during the current year. The Roseville Area Schools stands to take a "double loss" on Senate File 583. If the bill is approved as written, our taxpayers will be assessed a 2.92 mill rate increase - generating $1.47 million - and the district will not benefit from that revenue because the foundation aid to the school district that year will be reduced by a $1,680,469 creating a net loss of revenue to the district of $212,443. Senate Bill 583 will obviously have a devastating impact on our taxpayers and our school district's excellent instructional programs and reputation. Approval of this bill will result in our School Board and administration needing to take actions to implement budget reductions - again - to compensate for revenue losses imposed by the state. Needless to say, passage of Senate Bill 583 will result in a deterioration of programs and services offered by the Roseville Area Schools and, equally unfortunately, will impose a heavy tax on our taxpayers, grant no benefit to our students, and make it eminently more difficult for this school district to ever ask our taxpayers to come to the assistance of "our programs." Page 118