Post by doctorwho on Apr 30, 2012 10:44:45 GMT -6
Yes indeed - that free bus ride for those who live 1.5 miles or more from school -- likely going to way of the dinosaur. Funny we've heard no response from the district that thinks 9 miles to a high school is perfectly fine..and that $3.5 million extra per year to put butts in seats there- is about to get even more expensive.
Get ready to pony up additional monies ( fees or tax increase ? ) - to bus our children to school. And before anyone says they can't do that - consider this scenario:
When my daughter started Benet the state had a reimbrusement plan to private schools where school buses were not available. It amounted to about $300/year- so it wasn't earth shattering but it helped in times of $4/gal gas. See the busses the state is to provide are not the sole property of public schools either- the 'law' does not differentiate. Well the law hasn't changed - I was still supposed to get my reimbursement however Governor QUinn emptied that 'fund' and never put anything back into it -- therefore I could still file a claim however you get a nice letter saying they will reimburse it if the fund ever has money in it again. In Illinois- THAT is not breaking the law.
Fast forward to the 2000 kids that have to get to Metea - and some of the ridiculous boundaries as well for middle school. Well the bus can be made 'available' but there may be a fee associated with it-- and as usual based on the actual cost and I am sure the ability to pay.
So get ready - it's about to cost you more to get to school - very soon.
some other piss poor decisions here about to come home to roost once again, right on top your wallet
---------------------------
www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/illinois-considers-charging-kids-for-riding-school-buses/article_83e67cff-91e6-597d-8829-a51a1cb64fc0.html
Illinois considers charging kids for riding school buses
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. • Book bag, lunch box ... exact change?
The big yellow school bus, that enduring symbol of free public education, may not be so free in the future in Illinois. State education officials, struggling to find savings as the Legislature reduces funding, are considering a plan that would allow school districts to charge students for transportation.
The idea would be to replace some of the roughly 40 percent that the state has cut in recent years from reimbursements to districts for their mandatory bus expenses.
But districts across the Metro East say they aren't likely to start charging students for bus usage any time soon — even if the state gives them that option — because the high percentage of low-income students would make such a charge unworkable. That leaves open the question of how those districts will recoup plummeting state transportation dollars.
"We're a low-income community. I'm going to tell parents to send us $100 a year for transportation?" asked Dupo Community School District Superintendent Terry Milt.
It's a common question among area educators.
"My first thought is, it won't work," says Harry Briggs, superintendent for Granite City Community School District.
He and others note that federal law restricts schools from charging fees to low-income families, which is why many children are on free or reduced-price lunch programs.
"For a district like Granite City, we have a lot of free-and-reduced families. You can't pass that along," said Briggs. "I don't believe you could charge enough to break even" by charging just the higher-income students for bus service.
Belleville Elementary District faces a similar dilemma. About 1,300 students ride the buses, and about 60 percent of the student population is on free or reduced-price lunches — meaning any plan to fund bus service through fees would be on the backs of less than half the families in the district.
"In order for us to recoup all that money, can you imagine what we would have to charge?" asked Superintendent Matthew Klosterman. "It wouldn't be a charge that's affordable to most folks.
"We would be worried about attendance," Klosterman added. "The bottom line is we can't educate kids if they're not in school."
Even as state leaders have boasted of protecting education funding from budget cuts, related expenses such as transportation have suffered. Transportation funding to districts statewide has dropped to $205 million from $350 million in the past three years, according to the state Board of Education.
In sizable districts such as Granite City and Cahokia, annual busing costs run more than $3 million, with the state generally kicking in $2 million or less of that. Even the state payments that do come are often late — three fiscal quarters late as of last week in the case of Cahokia, according to district officials.
Nonetheless, those districts are still legally obligated to provide transportation for students who need it, which is often more than half the student population of any given school, and sometimes far more. Highland Community School District buses about 2,300 of its 3,000 students, officials say. At Cahokia, about 90 percent of the district's 4,200 students are bused.
Cahokia's Acting Superintendent Art Ryan said that no matter how much the state cuts the district's transportation reimbursement, there's no feasible way to lower the number of students riding buses because of major highways and other safety hazards that dissect the district.
"We're going to have to do just as much busing as we did last year," Ryan said. "They may just end up sticking us with the cost, and there's nothing we can do about it."
If charging students doesn't work, local school officials warn, the only alternative for districts that are seeing their state transportation reimbursement dry up is to pull money from other places — including classrooms.
"A cut is a cut," said Briggs, the Granite City superintendent. "If we're going to continue transporting students, and we don't get reimbursement, that money comes out of the education fund."
Educators say it's part of a disturbing trend in how the state is dealing with its continuing budget crisis. "It's just taking more costs that have been covered by the state, and transferring them to local people," said Mascoutah Community School District Superintendent Sam McGowen. "It has a significant impact on us."
In Illinois, most districts are legally required to provide free bus service to students who live 1.5 miles or more from the school. Districts already have the option of charging for students who live closer than that and still want to take the bus. An Illinois State Board of Education spokeswoman said the state doesn't track how many districts offer that option, or what they charge.
In Missouri, school districts are required to provide free transportation to public school students who live 3.5 miles or farther from their schools. Districts have the option to charge students who live closer than that but still want service.
Webster Groves charges students within that distance $400 a year for transportation to and from school. Between 250 to 300 students use the option, according to the district.
Jessica Bock of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
Get ready to pony up additional monies ( fees or tax increase ? ) - to bus our children to school. And before anyone says they can't do that - consider this scenario:
When my daughter started Benet the state had a reimbrusement plan to private schools where school buses were not available. It amounted to about $300/year- so it wasn't earth shattering but it helped in times of $4/gal gas. See the busses the state is to provide are not the sole property of public schools either- the 'law' does not differentiate. Well the law hasn't changed - I was still supposed to get my reimbursement however Governor QUinn emptied that 'fund' and never put anything back into it -- therefore I could still file a claim however you get a nice letter saying they will reimburse it if the fund ever has money in it again. In Illinois- THAT is not breaking the law.
Fast forward to the 2000 kids that have to get to Metea - and some of the ridiculous boundaries as well for middle school. Well the bus can be made 'available' but there may be a fee associated with it-- and as usual based on the actual cost and I am sure the ability to pay.
So get ready - it's about to cost you more to get to school - very soon.
some other piss poor decisions here about to come home to roost once again, right on top your wallet
---------------------------
www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/illinois-considers-charging-kids-for-riding-school-buses/article_83e67cff-91e6-597d-8829-a51a1cb64fc0.html
Illinois considers charging kids for riding school buses
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. • Book bag, lunch box ... exact change?
The big yellow school bus, that enduring symbol of free public education, may not be so free in the future in Illinois. State education officials, struggling to find savings as the Legislature reduces funding, are considering a plan that would allow school districts to charge students for transportation.
The idea would be to replace some of the roughly 40 percent that the state has cut in recent years from reimbursements to districts for their mandatory bus expenses.
But districts across the Metro East say they aren't likely to start charging students for bus usage any time soon — even if the state gives them that option — because the high percentage of low-income students would make such a charge unworkable. That leaves open the question of how those districts will recoup plummeting state transportation dollars.
"We're a low-income community. I'm going to tell parents to send us $100 a year for transportation?" asked Dupo Community School District Superintendent Terry Milt.
It's a common question among area educators.
"My first thought is, it won't work," says Harry Briggs, superintendent for Granite City Community School District.
He and others note that federal law restricts schools from charging fees to low-income families, which is why many children are on free or reduced-price lunch programs.
"For a district like Granite City, we have a lot of free-and-reduced families. You can't pass that along," said Briggs. "I don't believe you could charge enough to break even" by charging just the higher-income students for bus service.
Belleville Elementary District faces a similar dilemma. About 1,300 students ride the buses, and about 60 percent of the student population is on free or reduced-price lunches — meaning any plan to fund bus service through fees would be on the backs of less than half the families in the district.
"In order for us to recoup all that money, can you imagine what we would have to charge?" asked Superintendent Matthew Klosterman. "It wouldn't be a charge that's affordable to most folks.
"We would be worried about attendance," Klosterman added. "The bottom line is we can't educate kids if they're not in school."
Even as state leaders have boasted of protecting education funding from budget cuts, related expenses such as transportation have suffered. Transportation funding to districts statewide has dropped to $205 million from $350 million in the past three years, according to the state Board of Education.
In sizable districts such as Granite City and Cahokia, annual busing costs run more than $3 million, with the state generally kicking in $2 million or less of that. Even the state payments that do come are often late — three fiscal quarters late as of last week in the case of Cahokia, according to district officials.
Nonetheless, those districts are still legally obligated to provide transportation for students who need it, which is often more than half the student population of any given school, and sometimes far more. Highland Community School District buses about 2,300 of its 3,000 students, officials say. At Cahokia, about 90 percent of the district's 4,200 students are bused.
Cahokia's Acting Superintendent Art Ryan said that no matter how much the state cuts the district's transportation reimbursement, there's no feasible way to lower the number of students riding buses because of major highways and other safety hazards that dissect the district.
"We're going to have to do just as much busing as we did last year," Ryan said. "They may just end up sticking us with the cost, and there's nothing we can do about it."
If charging students doesn't work, local school officials warn, the only alternative for districts that are seeing their state transportation reimbursement dry up is to pull money from other places — including classrooms.
"A cut is a cut," said Briggs, the Granite City superintendent. "If we're going to continue transporting students, and we don't get reimbursement, that money comes out of the education fund."
Educators say it's part of a disturbing trend in how the state is dealing with its continuing budget crisis. "It's just taking more costs that have been covered by the state, and transferring them to local people," said Mascoutah Community School District Superintendent Sam McGowen. "It has a significant impact on us."
In Illinois, most districts are legally required to provide free bus service to students who live 1.5 miles or more from the school. Districts already have the option of charging for students who live closer than that and still want to take the bus. An Illinois State Board of Education spokeswoman said the state doesn't track how many districts offer that option, or what they charge.
In Missouri, school districts are required to provide free transportation to public school students who live 3.5 miles or farther from their schools. Districts have the option to charge students who live closer than that but still want service.
Webster Groves charges students within that distance $400 a year for transportation to and from school. Between 250 to 300 students use the option, according to the district.
Jessica Bock of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
