School Tax

[driftersifter]

As most American know our schools are in financial trouble. Rural schools are in the most trouble. I suggest a tax on sports that are broadcast. Lets be honest the sports athletes are trained in our schools and universities I feel that the training at this point is basically free of charge. I have no problem with leaving sports figures contracts alone I suggest we Tax the broadcast of these sporting events. The split of the revenue should be equal to each school district. Not each school's population. This will help the rural schools recover from the population drops some of them are seeing and allow them to compete with urban schools. Funding for most schools is based upon the population which is an excellant way to fund a school but it shouldn't be the only way.
It should be noted that by sporting events I mean more than basketball or football I mean any professional sport like hunting shows and fishing shows as well as golf and tennis.
What do you think?
Driftersifter

 

[NeMont]

I think you need to turn your TV off.

 

[driftersifter]

The thing is I don't like sports on TV. I like to participate in sports not watch them. Your answer made little sense on a serious problem.
driftersifter

 

[TripleK]

You want to tax the radio stations or tv stations who are doing the broadcast? I think that's a bad idea. They already pay to maintain phone lines and taxes on those to broadcast, plus taxes they already pay on sales and all kinds of other FCC stuff, and it's kinda pricey to broadcast and travel w/a team anyway. If it's not profitable for a station, they'll just drop the sports broadcasts altogether.

It's not like they're a huge money-maker anyway, when you're talking high school sports. It's more of a community service around here (and mostly I used the sports as a bonus situation when I sold ads). And, around here the high school booster club sells ads for playoff games and state championship games to raise money for themselves. The station just takes enough to cover their travel and broadcast expenses.

 

[driftersifter]

You don't think that 1 percent of the cost of a minute of the ad for the super bowl is a small amount? What about Nascar and Golf, Major League Baseball, the list goes on. I said Pro Sports NOT high school sports.
Driftersifter

 

[theridge]

Do you know how much capital the schools in Kalironicated receive? Hell, we might as well raise the income tax on those that make more than 50K, oops I dont think the teaches will go for that because so many make that much or more.

 

[Cornhusker]

Is 50K too much for teaching in California? Are they driving Lexus and BMW's?

 

[RELH]

I will never vote yes on any school bond in CA. The reason is that our school system is nothing but a pork barrel that feeds the top admin. not the needs of the classrooms or teachers.
If you want to verify this, just check your local school system. See what the top admin. draws in salary compared to the teachers. Then check the jobs allocated to that school system, and you will find more persons employed in a non teaching job that never set foot in a class room.
The bad part of this is that those admin. employees are the ones that decide where the money will be spent. I know teachers that spend 500-1,000 bucks a year out of their own pockets for class room supplies, yet the admin. people are spending thousands of dollars to upgrade their office furniture that is only 2-3 years old.
When you build a home in my county, the school tax is over $2.30 per Sq. foot. They also receive a good portion of the lottery money, and they still yell for more money. But they have no problem when it comes to building a new office complex for the admin people that ran over several million dollars. This is in a county of only 60,000 persons, I would hate to see the waste being done in larger populated areas.
I have a son and Daughter-in-law that work as teachers, and they agree that there is too much waste at the top, while the classrooms of kids is neglected.
Before you ever vote on more money for schools, do some checking and see if you have a pork barrel. If you do, tell them "No" everytime until they clean up the misuse of funds and allocate the money to where it should have been going all the time, the classrooms and the teachers.

RELH

 

[eelgrass]

Monies generated from timber sales on public lands used to go to rural schools. Clinton stopped that by stopping timber sales. Bush tried to sell certain Forest Service parcels to pick up the slack. That got shot down. Doesn't sound like you'll get much support for your idea either driftsifter, although I would support it. All the big money spent on sports these days, what's a few bucks for a worthwhile cause such as this? The money has to come from somewhere.

Here where I live it is a timber driven economy. No more Forest Service logging, and almost every private logging plan ends up in court.(thanks hippie tree huggers!) Lots of land put into Parks or Wilderness which takes it off the tax roles. And now everyone is crying because public services are being cut due to lack of funding. DUH!!

Steve

 

[moneyman]

Where I live the teachers unions have bankrupted the schools. More taxes would just aid their cause.

 

[theridge]

In our school district the teachers unions turned downed a 20% raise over two years!!!!! They didn't like the language in it. Our top paid teacher makes approx 75K and our top admin makes 110K. Lets not forget the teacher works approx 180 days a year and the admin. work over 210 days. I don't think the teachers are underpaid and I surely believe the admin. isn't overpaid. Especially when putting up with the antics of the CTA and NEA. They are a terrorist union organization that have placed the kids second behind their power grabbing union!

 

[polarbear]

Here in Warshington there are several taxes that are "supposed" to be allocated towards schools. All lottery procedes were supposed to go to schools but when our last 2 Governors, Comrade Chairman Locke and Chris Skeletor Gregoire, (all Democrats) decided that that money would work better in the general fund so that the had less accountability for spending it and could p!ss it away on useless crap! The state has no money to fix roads or schools, yet Locke averaged 4-7 trips (on our dime) to China (his home land)each year under the idea that he was bringing more trade from China to WA. In other words sending all of our raw logs and produce to be processed over seas cutting us out of jobs. Gregoire is on a huge spending spree right now because the general fund is in a surplus. No wonder we have a surplus in the general fund, it isnt going to the places that it was origionally intended for!!! Now she wants to spend $10 million to find out how we can help (ie give hand outs to) the homeless in Western WA. That $10 mill should go to inproving public schools so these folks dont wind up on the streets!!! Our scools suck because of our state government putting more focus on cultural diversity, the arts and this new (bs) math instead of teaching the kids the basics of education. Our schools are turning out more semi-litterate kids than ever before and most of it is due to the way our state funds nad structures our schools.

Ok, I'll get off of my soapbox and take my meds now!


THE ONLY polarbear WHO THINKS OUR STATE GOVERNMENT WANTS TO PUT OUT MORE STUPID KIDS SO THAY WILL VOTE DEMOCRAT!!!!!
Eric

 

[eelgrass]

By reading all the responses, one would think our education system is run by the Government.

Steve

 

[Cornhusker]

No Child Left Behind is a huge scam that have greatly increased the cost to states through the testing programs and paperwork mandated by the federal government all unfunded. In many areas the administrative increases can be directly tied to No child Left Behind which is a joke in philosophy and action. Administrative costs are way out of whack no doubt about it and the educational bureaucracy like all government bureaucracies waste money. Many of you guys think the War on Terror is Bush's biggest screwup, if that's true the federal education policy is a close 2nd.

 

[Cornhusker]

theridge calling CTA and NEA terrorist union organization certainly takes away much of your credibility. I don't like them particularly either but in most states the National Education Association can't even strike. I assume the CTA is California Teachers Association which I don't know much about. Either way I haven't heard of any terrorist type action from either, and I'm sure it would make the national papers.

 

[missinMT]

eelgrass has it right. If you do not like it, get involved with your schools. Join the PTA, run for school board, whatever, but your public schools need your help in so many ways it is not even funny. You can run all the stats and rehtoric that you want, the simple truth is schools are in trouble because good people don't get involved. That is true across the entire country, in all levels of governemen, IMHO.

 

[Cornhusker]

IMHO you are exactly correct missinMT.

 

[theridge]

Husker, you are right, terrorist is a little harsh. I should have said militant group! My wife is a teacher and it blows me away how the militant union members have this "us versus them" attitude. These same so called professionals wear this attitude on their shirt sleeves while in the classroom. They wear their devisive shirts and buttons and talk it up in the classromm. We are talking K thru 5th grade! Like the kids really want to learn more about union issues at that age.

I agree missinMT has it correct and as of yet no teacher has blown up a school. I've heard of a couple of females having affairs with their students in some school district in one of the most liberal states in the union, WA not CA. I'll get off my soap. Thanks

 

[easymoney]

relh,
Right on the mark, as to one of the biggest problems facing the public schools here in Kalifornistan... I live in rural county that has the same issues and the only ones making out are the top administration employees. Most of the money is thrown at admin salaries and buildings, while the schools and teachers get what is left. Millions are spent on fancy new admin buildings, but the kids are using old modular(trailers) with no AC or adequate heating.
It is the same problem at the county admin level as well, my county just built a new 92 million dollar building for the public services admin employees(porkers)and the Board of Superwhiners. And yet, they don't have enough money to fund general services employees who take care of these buildings and our parks.
I too have voted no on all new bond measures, because the money never makes it down to the schools or students.

Stop Global Whining