| Republican State Representative Larry Gonzales voted for a budget last session that slashed billions from public education, and now Hutto ISD is paying the price for his party-line vote.
As a result of his vote, Hutto ISD, which is located within Rep. Gonzales's district, was forced to close Veteran's Hill Elementary and lay off 70 employees.
From the Texas Democratic Party:
"Their votes had consequences. Now school children in Gonzales' district are paying for his reckless votes," TDP Spokesman Rebecca Acuna said.
According to Hutto ISD's website:
"The Hutto Independent School District Due to inadequate state funding and recent budget cuts, Hutto ISD must trim an additional $1.2 million from its operating budget for the 2012-13 school year. These additional cuts follow $4.5 million in cuts during the 2011-12 school year, which included the loss of about 70 staff members, the closure of Veteran's Hill Elementary and budget cuts at all campuses."
Hutto ISD is also considering
Charging children $100 a semester to ride the school bus
Charging children $100 a year to participate in extracurricular activities
Eliminating instructional field-trips
Canceling away travel for the band
TDP spokesman Anthony Gutierrez added, "Gonzales must own up to what he's done. At the very least, he should apologize to the families in his district."
Hutto ISD had a meeting this past Wednesday to decide where to cut the 1.2 million dollars that they lack for the 2012-2013 school year due to budget cuts from the state. Hutto already taxes their residents the cap of $1.04 for every $100 property valuation (to tax more the district would need a referendum), and the district said that raising the rate would fill the $1.2 million gap. Among the other many ideas the Hutto Superintendent is considering, one of them is charging students in the district to ride the bus.
All the residents and school board members are scrambling for a solution to the this budget crisis. Hopefully they will find a short term solution to the budget gap for next year. However, in the future to avoid further mindless cuts to public education, may I suggest to all members in the Hutto ISD area to vote for Democrats next time. |
