EDITOR:
With Proposition C on the ballot on April 2, here is some information the district has not sent to voters.
The school district wants to get rid of the Prop C Tax rollback. The taxpayers of Missouri have enjoyed this TAX RELIEF BENEFIT for over 40 years, since 1982. R-3 voters defeated this waiver in 2012 and here it is again. Once you vote to fully waive it, it is gone FOREVER and you will not see this reduction in your taxes again. The district only needs a simple majority of the handful of voters that come out in April for it to go away so you need to show up and tell your friends.
There is an INCREASE of $.0455 per $100 included on the ballot for the operating levy. A tax increase is on the ballot, but the district is “selling it” as a “no-tax increase,” because they are taking away money from our current debt payments that should be paying down our debt to make up the difference. This is debt you will now pay on longer, costing you more tax dollars.
Compare it to using the equity in your home to borrow on every time you pay it down and so you never pay it off, you just pay more interest. In this case, the taxpayers never get lower taxes even when the district has stagnant growth, like now, which is when our property taxes are supposed to go down, not up.
The district plans on asking for another $56 million from you in 2025. See 2022-23 state audited debt numbers for the district at PlattecountyR3facts.com on Facebook.
From 2017 to 2023 enrollment was only up 34 students in the R-3 school district, but 43 new employees were added.
From 2017 to 2023 payroll INCREASED approximately $6 million at the R-3 district. Approximately 70% of the total budget is used for: salaries, benefits and “purchased services.”
As of 2022 (may be higher now) 10 employees at just the district office make over $100,000 per year. Eight of those over $120,000 with four over $140,000 per year.
According to the Department of Secondary Education, Platte County R-3 teachers have average total compensation $5,000 above the state average and our administrators make $16,000 more while we have a much higher administrators-per-student ratio. The district- published salary rankings for our teachers did not include information about years of service, extra duty pay, or our teachers’ lower amount of higher degrees compared to other area districts. This makes it look like R-3 salaries are in the middle of the pack when in fact they are some of the highest.
R-3’s bond rating for a large portion of its debt is AA-, not AA Stable as published in last week’s paper. Lower than many area districts and lower than the state’s guaranteed rate. A lower rate means taxpayers pay more in interest. I guess the district forgot about their $20 million in lease purchase debt when sending out the press release.
This information should make you think twice about voting to waive Prop C. If you do not want it waived and don’t want to pay more for our debt or possible levy increases, VOTE NO.
--Kirby Holden
Rural Platte County