If you live in the Vancouver or Evergreen School District, you should by now have received a ballot that asks for your vote to continue the current operating levy.
I urge you to vote YES on that ballot, and send it in.
It's true that times are tough right now, and I am well aware that we need to make our public services more efficient and effective. Every single one of us in public service needs to make better use of your tax dollars and do much more with what we have.
But while we work to do exactly that, we need to remember our responsibility to our children and future generations. A good education is critical to fostering an active, engaged citizenry and a prosperous community. Whether you have children in the schools or not, the quality and effectiveness of our schools affects us all.
These levies are simple replacement levies – our schools aren't asking for new tax monies. They are asking us to continue support for operations and maintenance. For some, due to the tough economic times, your taxes will actually decrease even with the continued levy.
Our community is strong now because of historical support for our schools – they are widely recognized as top-notch, and one of the top reasons people move here from across the river and across the country. I'm proud to be a product of the Vancouver School District, and many other community leaders are able to say the same.
Let's keep our schools strong and our children ready to succeed – please vote YES for Vancouver and Evergreen Schools.
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I agree with what you say about public service workers needing to make better use of tax dollars. There are many ways to trim spending without losing workers. I am most worried about losing our sworn officers. This is the worst possible time to be cutting jobs, especially those keeping our community safe.
This is about public safety, & the security of our community. There should be 2.5 officers per 1,000 people. Here in Vancouver we are running on 1.2 officers per 1,000 people. Now I hear we will be losing more officers. This has to stop now, there has to be other options!
Not to mention, our officers are a huge investment. They are very expensive to train, & they are already trained & working. If we lay them off we will have to pay to train new officers in a couple of years. It could actually cost more in the long run & we will be without our police officers during such a vital time when we need them most.
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