Referendum Mandate

Thanks to the expiration of Aurora TIF #2, the Batavia School District started receiving an additional $6 million in revenue per year. The Board described this as, "the type of windfall that districts dream of" [Finance Committee Meeting, 22 October 2013].

Many in the community asked the School Board to refund some of this tax money to lower the growing property tax burden. These voices received a common reply, "These funds were anticipated in the budget adopted in September 2013 and were the source of approving the additional staff and capital improvements included within that budget." The Board never intended to lower the levy; spending and taxation has only increased.

Not long after receiving the dreamy windfall, the Board proposed a $15 million bond referendum for capital improvements. Batavia resoundingly voted NO to the "advisory question." The message the board received from the 75% NO vote was that the community was opposed to debt [1]. The residents of Batavia are tired of their tax burden, they're tired of the accelerating spending, and they're tired of the justifications that come from a Board that is out of touch with the community they represent.

The 8,000 voters who said NO care about more than debt. The landslide vote was a mandate to the Batavia School District to manage its finances and control its spending.

Every School Board Member takes an oath:

I shall respect taxpayer interests by serving as a faithful protector of the School District’s assets;

I shall encourage and respect the free expression of opinion by my fellow Board members and others who seek a hearing before the Board, while respecting the privacy of students and employees;

I shall recognize that a Board member has no legal authority as an individual and that decisions can be made only by a majority vote at a public Board meeting; and

I shall abide by majority decisions of the Board, while retaining the right to seek changes in such decisions through ethical and constructive channels.

It is time the School Board remember the oath they took and represent the interests of Batavia's taxpayers.

[1] Mentioned in the Finance Committee Meeting on 11/13/14 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDPdZ6tJOMo