The Suozzi Commission’s report on school funding was a monumental waste of time, energy and money. It’s nothing more than a self serving political circus calculated to con the voting public into believing that our elected representatives are actually doing something meaningful to address the real problem. If accepted and implemented, the plan will simply and minimally shift the cost of funding public education from one set of taxpayers to another. It completely and intentionally ignores the already exorbitant cost of public education, and, by imposing fallacious “caps” on property tax increases, essentially guarantees future school budget increases as far as the eye can see. .
Rather than producing a plan which basically delivered more sleight of hand maneuvering aimed at sucking the taxpayer dry, the Commission should have at least developed a plan which presented several options, including getting the government out of the education business. By being forced to compete for the tuition dollar, schools would have to find ways to deliver the best possible education at the lowest possible price; teachers, parents and students would all benefit. So long as powerful special interests and their lackeys in office are in control, there’s no hope for real relief from the onerous tax burden that’s driving people from their homes and lowering property values across Long Island.
