WCBOE Public Information Officer to Receive 33% Pay Raise

How big a raise did you get this year?  That is the question that all Wicomico County taxpayers should be asking themselves as the Wicomico County Board of Education (WCBOE) prepares to award their “Public Information Liaison” a whopping pay increase of 33%!

While hardly a bargain for Wicomico taxpayers, we know that this is a steal for Supt. John Fredericksen.  As most of you probably know, the WCBOE’s “Public Information Liaison” happens to be the wife of Erick Sahler, managing editor of the Daily Times.  One of the perks of such an “arrangement” is that no unflattering coverage of the BOE appears within the pages of our local rag.

While we regularly read about the problems of the Somerset BOE, the fights between the Worcester County Commissioners and their BOE, and teacher pay issues in several Sussex County school districts (Delaware has independent school districts), coverage of the Wicomico County schools is primarily limited to puff pieces of children receiving awards.  Note that NO coverage was given to the WCBOE’s recent decision to increase retiree healthcare benefits.  Note that explanation of the WCBOE’s “dollar swap” as budget cut was afforded the same type of explanation as the Daily Times usually reserves for Barrie Tilghman’s transgressions; in other words, shine sunshine up people’s backsides.  As far as the WCBOE is concerned, increasing Mrs. Sahler’s salary from around $40,000 to over $54,000 is the sale of the century.  Most school districts couldn’t buy this kind of coverage (or lack thereof);  the Daily Times has sold it pretty cheap.

Wicomico Budget Vote Tuesday – Another Pig in a Poke

As the Wicomico County Council prepares to approve another budget, taxpayers will again be buying a pig in a poke.  No, this is not a criticism of the council, but concern that Wicomico elected officials will be appropriating most of the county’s tax dollars to a proverbial black hole – the Wicomico County Board of Education (WCBOE).

So far, the county government has no idea as to how tax dollars at WCBOE will be spent.  While I am sure that we would hear protestations from the likes of Supt. John Fredericksen and councilman Bill McCain, the facts are simple;  we don’t know how much the WCBOE’s employees will be paid next year.  Given that a disporportionate percentage of the BOE’s budget goes to salaries, how can we know how much the BOE is spending next year.  How can the county council or County Executive Rick Pollitt?

The answer is simple.  They can’t.  As county employees dodged the furlough bullet, expect to see WCBOE employees either receive raises, an increase in benefits through the now infamous “Rate Stabilization” slush fund, or both.

Expect Pollitt to continue to whine about the revenue cap.  Expect the teachers’ union (or probably all four WCBOE unions) to start organizing for the cap’s repeal.  Expect to hear that “It’s for the Children!“.

When bad teachers can be fired and the majority of BOE members start treating the taxpayer with something better than contempt, MAYBE it will be time to start having that discussion.  Of course, if the cap is ever repealed I’m sure Rick Pollitt has a huge wish list.

Wicomico BOE Swaps Dollars Rather Tighten Belt

Yesterday, in what was probably the most important work session of Wicomico County Council’s FY 2010 budget deliberations, the Wicomico County Board of Education (WCBOE) showed even more disdain for Maryland and Wicomico taxpayers.  To meet a $2 million shortfall the WCBOE proposed a multi-million dollar bait and switch that would land Supt. John Fredericksen and his crew in prison if we were talking about a private company rather than a government bureaucracy.

Here are the basics of the “grand scheme”:

• Last year, Wicomico County funded the WCBOE with $700,000 ABOVE the state mandated maintenance of effort (MOE).  The WCBOE proposes to transfer that money BACK to Wicomico County and then have the county transfer the funds back to WCBOE.

• A few years ago the county passed legislation enabling the WCBOE to establish a “School Construction Savings Plan” (SCSP).  Any surplus left at the WCBOE is supposed to go into the SCSP.  The WCBOE proposes that $1.3 million be taken from this fund, transfered BACK to the county, and then transferred back to the WCBOE.

Only in government would such a scheme be considered “savings”.
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Wicomico Board of Ed and Daily Times Attempt to Scam the Taxpayers … AGAIN

Never fear.  The government is here to help you.  In today’s case, it is the good folk at the Wicomico Board of Education (WCBOE) who are colluding with our own local version of Pravda to pick the pocket of the average, hard working citizen of Wicomico County.

The folks over at the WCBOE are going to scrimp and save to help fix a problem of their own making – a $2 million shortfall in the county budget which the board and Supt. John Fredericksen exacerbated by fighting the county’s request of a waiver of the state momentum of effort (MOE) rules.  The Daily Times wants us to somehow believe that the WCBOE are the champions of our children.

It’s interesting.  Just last week the WCBOE voted to increase the taxpayer paid portion of retiree healthcare benefits from 55% to 70%.  Only board president Robin Holloway dissented.  Yet, the $357,000 of taxpayer money to be spent on yet another juicy benefit for government workers and retirees would amount to almost 18% of the $2 million budget hole.  The county’s budget will have been adopted before the public even gets a chance to find out whether Wicomico County teachers and staff will receive a pay increase next year, and how much.
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Wicomico MOE Waiver Denied – State Gives Finger to Wicomico Citizens

The Maryland State Board of Education has denied Wicomico County’s request for a waiver of the state’s Momentum of Effort rule.  County Executive Rick Pollitt, along with the Wicomico County Council will now be forced to come up with approximately $2 million in additional cuts to the county’s budget.

Council Joe Holloway (R-5) responded to the state’s decision:

I’m disappointed.  I was hoping that as a county, the Board, Rick Pollitt and the County Council could work as a team to solve our current fiscal dillemma.  Unfortunately, Dr. Fredericksen’s efforts seem to have derailed our attempts to weather the county’s current financial situation.

Councilwoman Gail Bartkovich believes that the WCBOE should find a solution within their own budget:

I think that the board of education needs to find those cuts in their own budget.  Our county departments can’t make any more cuts this year.  While county employees are receiving no pay increase this year, and we’re even talking about furlough days, the board is able to increase benefits for their retirees.

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Education in Wicomico County – Is It Really “For the Children”?

The next time you hear a public official, any public official, claim that we need to spend more on education in Wicomico County, grab your wallet and run in the opposite direction.  The Wicomico County Board of Education is worried about catering to its four unions, not about providing a quality education to our children.

Tuesday night I attended my first Wicomico County Board of Education (WCBOE) meeting.  After witnessing the complete disdain in which Wicomico taxpayers are regarded by this merry little band, it won’t be my last.

The reason I chose to attend the meeting was twofold:

• To comment on my extreme disappoint with Superintendent John Fredericksen’s decision to use taxpayer dollars in opposition to County Executive Rick Pollitt’s decision to request a waiver from the state’s Momemtum of Effort (MOE) rule.

• To state my oppositon to the Board’s proposal to increase the taxpayer share of retiree health benefits from 55% to 70%

While there may not appear to be a link between the two issues, in fact there is a very strong tie.  The majority of the WCBOE seem to be far more concerned with appeasing their “bargaining units” (government jargon for the teachers’ union, administrators union, classified employees’ union, and maintenance / custodial union) than in ensuring a quality education for our children or being faithful stewards of our tax dollars.

According to the board’s self-proclaimed fiscal conservative – Brian Kilgore – this proposal isn’t going to cost the taxpayers any money.  This is only one area where Kilgore and I differ on this subject.  Approximately $357,000 (of the estimated $430,000 that this benefit will cost NEXT year) is to come from “savings” that are to come from merging the Salisbury, Wicomico County, and WCBOE plans.  These “savings” are the taxpayers’ money.
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Why Looters Would Rather Steal From You

Yesterday we ran a post highlighting a proposal by the unholy troika of local / regional enviros, the socialist majority of the Wicomico County Council (led by John Cannon and Bill McCain) and County Executive Rick Pollitt (who is attempting to PUBLICLY straddle the fence as usual).  This legislation would legalize the theft of land from Wicomico County farmers.

In our post we discussed why enviro groups such as the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) need to participate in socialist schemes rather than actually solve problems as they claim.  Today I noticed further evidence of this from the Commonwealth.

Oyster packers and waterman wish to expand the planting of Asian oysters.  The CBF and other lefty enviros vehemently oppose this.  Their claim is that there could be “unforseen consequences” of introducing a non-native species into the Chesapeake Bay watershed.  I would agree, except that these oysters are STERILE.  They can’t reproduce.  Of course, there may be “unforseen consequences” of the sun rising tomorrow.
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Looters Loose in Wicomico County …

… County Council Proposes Plunder in the “Name of the People”

If you have ever read Frederic Bastiat’s The Law you are familiar with concept of legalized plunder.  If you have ever read Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged you are familiar with the looting class.  If not, I heartily suggest you read them FAST.  THEFT in the name of “public good” has come to our little corner of the world.

Last Tuesday, the Democrat majority of the Wicomico County Council (sorry John Cannon, you no longer qualify as even a “Republican in Name Only”) voted to move forward with legislation that will strip farmers of their property rights.  The council’s proposal would reduce the number of lots which a parcel may be subdivided into.  It also ends the dreaded “cluster provision” which allowed farmers to sell parcels of land for development at greater density by requiring that more open space would be preserved.  The net effect of this proposal is to drastically reduce the value of a given parcel relative to its value if still developable.

Translation – the farmers pay so that certain developers and special interest groups may prosper and the lefty fringe can feel good about themselves.

Council members Gail Bartkovich, Joe Holloway and Stevie Prettyman stood their ground.  If Ag District landowners are to lose value in their greatest asset, they need to be compensated.  Additionally, the legislation itself appears to be seriously flawed.  This doesn’t seem to bother the socialist majority of the Wicomico County Council.

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Somerset BOE Stands Firm, Educations More Important Than Sports

The Somerset Board of Education has stood firm and kept its current policy of requiring student to hold a minimum 2.0 GPA to participate in school sports.  The BOE should be commended for its strength of character.  This is in particular contrast to the Wicomico and Worcester Boards who allow a much lower GPA.

At least someone gets it.  School is for learning.

County Council Moves Forward With Land Theft Bill

The Democrat majority of the Wicomico County Council moved forward today with legislation to strip Wicomico farmers of their property rights.  Council members Gail Bartkovich, Joe Holloway and Stevie Prettyman demanded that their names be removed from the legislation after noting that there was no mechanism to compensate farmers for the proposed land grab.

Moving the legislation to public hearing was approved by council members Bill McCain, Dave MacLeod, Sheree Sample-Hughes, and the council’s newest Dem John Cannon.  Sample-Hughes was at least honest enough to admit that there would NOT be any compensation mechanism in the legislation.

We’ll have a more detailed report tomorrow.  We are also waiting for a response from County Executive Rick Pollitt.  Pollitt has stated on at least two occasions that he would not support a bill that failed to compensate land owners for the loss of development rights.  I’m hoping that he sticks to his guns.

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