School bond debated

Despite criticism that a proposed Carson City school bond won't buy textbooks, a school board member said Tuesday the bond money can only be used for the purposes spelled out - school safety, technology and fixing school buildings

An opponent of the $18 million bond on the Nov. 7 ballot told the Republican Women's Club Tuesday that providing textbooks for every child is more important than replacing old systems in the school district.

"I believe the schools have urgent needs," said Nannette Moffett, who in recent days has emerged as spokeswoman for critics of the bond. "The most urgent need is to have the tools necessary for learning and the most important tool is textbooks."

"Nothing in the bond addresses the need for textbooks," she said during a debate with school board trustee John McKenna.

However, McKenna, an eight-year veteran of the board, said the district can't use a bond issue to raise money for textbooks.

"You can only tax yourselves for buildings and improvement of those buildings," McKenna said. "You cannot tax yourselves to buy more textbooks. That has to come from the Legislature."

He added that textbooks are updated every seven years but still do not keep up with changing information.

"Textbooks are becoming more and more obsolete," McKenna said.

Superintendent Jim Parry said the district spent $411,000 last year on textbooks and this year $448,814. Moffett, during a forum on Monday evening, had said the district cut its book budget to $110,000 this year. But Parry said Moffett didn't realize that each school has a book budget.

Moffett, who hosts a Carson Access Television show "Another Point of View," also questioned the amount of money spent on teacher salaries and benefits.

"The teachers' union is one of the worst things to happen to education," she said. "Teachers' unions and casinos, they run this town."

McKenna said the bond did not address teachers' salaries.

"This bond has nothing to do with that," he said. "This bond is about bathrooms that don't work and single-paned windows."

Moffett said the district should have been making these repairs throughout the years to prevent the need now.

Director of Operations Mike Mitchell said repairs have been made throughout the district where more than 30 percent of the buildings are more than 40 years old.

"They're old systems that are not economically viable to maintain anymore," Mitchell said. "We've maintained them for 40 years. We're done maintaining them. They need to be replaced."

Moffett pointed out that the district received $4,310 per student enrolled in the district this year as opposed to last year's $4,266, resulting in about $4 million more in this year's budget.

"They need to account for that added revenue," Moffett said.

Parry said that money went to increased costs.

The teachers negotiated a 2 percent raise which cost about $1.5 million. Insurance costs went up by 35 percent, costing the district about $500,000 and the remaining $2 million went to pay for an increases in utility costs, gasoline and other school supplies including paper.

Diann Gardner, a member of the club who attended the luncheon, said she was concerned whether the $18 million would really go to make the improvements set forth by the district.

"I worry about where it's going to go," she said. "I have reservations. I'm afraid it might go to high technology."

School Board President Jean Kvam said technology is key to learning.

"Why would you use a textbook that's maybe 10 years old when you can get on the Internet and get current information in five minutes?" she said.

Parry said the money will not go to increase teacher or administrator salaries.

"It's against the law to use bond money for any salaries other than someone who would supervise construction," he said.

McKenna was also questioned whether the tax rate would drop if the bond proposal did not pass in this year's election.

"If the bond passes, the tax rate should stay the same," he said. "Now, if we reduce the tax rate, there is no assurance that the city won't take that deficit and increase taxes for the city's purposes."

The Carson City School District tax rate has dropped 18 cents during the last five years but taxes have remained the same overall because the city has raised its tax rate.

The cost of the bond is about $39 a year for the owner of a $100,000 home.