By Brian Massie, Citizen Journalist, A Watchman on the Wall
During the Lake County Commissioners’ meeting on June 15, 2023, Commissioner John Plecnik expressed his concern about State Senator Jerry Cirino’s Senate Bill 83, and the State Senate’s proposed budget that reduces the revenue for the majority of Lake County school districts. It is worthy to note that Senator Cirino made sure that the Kirtland school district, his home district, received an increase in their State revenue.
Here is a video of Commissioner Plecnik, memorializing his comments:
Since Commissioner Plecnik mentioned a letter they received from Senator Cirino, our public records request produced the following document.
Here is a document that details the winners and losers in the Lake County School Districts based on the Senate’s proposed budget.
This will be really bad news for school administrators, but the Mentor Superintendent, Craig Heath, will find it especially disturbing since they are planning an additional 2.5 mil property tax levy in November 2023. How do we know? We were at the Mentor School Board meeting where the school’s Finance Director, Bill Wade, revealed their intent to increase taxes for property improvements. Here is a picture of a page from their presentation:
For the average homeowner in Mentor with a home valued at $250,000, it will mean an increase of $218.75 per year in property taxes. [ 2.5 mils x $35.00 x 2.5 ($250,000/$100,000)] If the homeowner’s HAT % (Household Affordability Threshold) equals 25%, it will mean that the homeowner will have to experience an increase in their annual income of $875.00 in order to avoid moving closer to the HAT % of 30%. [$218.75 / 25%]
When the taxpayers look at the Mentor School District’s math proficiency scores, their “Don’t tell your Mom, it will be our little secret” personal pronoun policy, their violation of ORC 2907.321 Pandering Obscenity to Minors, and their insane policy of not protecting females by allowing biological males in the girls’ bathroom and locker room, passing this property tax levy is going to be very difficult. Superintendent Craig Heath may want to ensure his resume in up to date.
As for Senator Cirino, the press has not been very kind to him. We believe that he had great intentions to ensure conservative voices could be heard in the halls of higher education, but, alas, not all share our views.
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Categories: Education, Lake County Politics