Tonawanda News

Editorials

March 13, 2006

School voucher program needs work

North Tonawanda, NY — It’s not a bad idea, offering a $500-per-child education tax credit to parents of children in underperforming school districts if they choose to send them to a private or religious school, but is it a good idea to punish the underperforming school district?

That appears to be what Gov. George Pataki’s proposed voucher legislation will do. At least temporarily. Then it’s likely going to punish taxpayers.

According to figures released Monday by the state’s teachers union, Pataki’s voucher legislation would divert up to $400 million annually from New York school districts. Depending on the school district, individual losses range anywhere from $2 million to $50,000 a year.

The money has to come from somewhere, but penalizing already underperforming schools so a child can attend a private school seems a little ridiculous. So is partially funding private schools with public money.

Another problem is we don’t expect local school districts will suffer long. If you think they’re just going to absorb those cuts, keep dreaming. You’ll be making up the difference in next year’s school tax bill.

That means you’ll be paying for the program twice — with your state taxes and your school taxes.

We’d like a better choice.

Text Only
Editorials
  • Give chicken plan free range

    May 3, 2012

  • Scale back Canal Fest hours

    A decision Tuesday by the Tonawanda Common Council to require daily Canal Fest operations on the south side of the canal to conclude by 10 p.m., rather than 11, apparently isn’t sitting well with Canal Fest organizers, who have yet to agree to the change.

    April 5, 2012

  • OUR VIEW: Kudos to Slaughter on STOCK Act

    Rep. Louise Slaughter and a small band of colleagues in the House of Representatives deserve praise for their determination in putting a stop to a long-standing dirty secret in politics — that members of Congress have been making a boatload of cash by parlaying their official knowledge of the nation’s affairs into private fortunes on the stock market.

    March 28, 2012

  • OUR VIEW: Time to fundamentally rethink education

    In the three school districts primarily composing the Tonawandas we are seeing, in varying degrees, the beginning of the end of education here as we know it.

    March 21, 2012

  • OUR VIEW: Super job by Bills on signing Williams

    More than the Xs and Os of a football playbook, the Mario Williams signing is a generation-in-the-waiting signal that this franchise is finally on the right track.

    March 17, 2012

  • OUR VIEW: WNY must build on success at ECC

    In reading Sunday’s cover story by reporter Jill Keppeler, readers probably shared our shock in the success story that is the Erie Community College industrial technology program.

    March 6, 2012

  • OUR VIEW: ‘Mailing it in’ is not good enough

    The U.S. Postal Service has been mailing it in for years.

    March 1, 2012

  • Jill Keppeler KEPPELER: Daydream believer

    I felt sorry for Whitney Houston. But this week, the world lost two people whose departure makes me truly nostalgic.

    March 1, 2012 1 Photo

  • OUR VIEW: Slisz v. Beyer exposes flaws in election system

    Though voters in the city who have waited for nearly four months to find out who won might find this welcome news, the problems with our election system this razor-thin race uncovered are anything but comforting.

    February 25, 2012

  • OUR VIEW: Officials need to take walk

    The tumult and excitement over approving Nik Wallenda’s request to walk across the Niagara Gorge has at times been deafening.

    February 23, 2012

Featured Ads
AP Video
Raw Video: Activists Allege Massacre in Syria NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium 50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach CEO Salaries Become Sore Issue in Labor Disputes Raw Video: Fight Erupts in Ukrainian Parliament Texan Ranchers Remain Wary of Drought Raw Video: Soldiers Plant Flags at Arlington Police: Man Arrested in Etan Patz Disappearance NYC Protests: the Revolution Will Be Scripted Chicago U.S. Attorney Fitzgerald Resigns Neighbors of Etan Patz's Suspect: It's Shocking Gulf Fishermen Reel From Seafood Troubles Stuntman Makes Skydive Without Parachute in UK
Community Calendar
Loading…
Events by eviesays.com
Seasonal Content
Hyperlocal Search
Premier Guide
Find a business

Walking Fingers
Maps, Menus, Store hours, Coupons, and more...
Premier Guide
Popular Searches
Powered by Local.com
Front page
Twitter Updates
Follow me on Twitter