25°c Partly cloudy
18°c Cloudy periods
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Big tax hike or cutbacks for biggest division
Mark Wasyliw
ALL those annual predictions of doom and gloom in the Winnipeg School Division could finally be about to come true.
The province's largest division is facing property-tax increases up to eight per cent just to maintain the status quo, said school board vice-chairman Mark Wasyliw -- and parents are demanding costly improvements that go way, way beyond the status quo.
The word is out since a recent invitation-only meeting for parents councils, trustees, and MLAs that was closed to the general public and media.
"We have to raise taxes, or cut programs, which means job losses," Wasyliw said.
"We're anticipating another three per cent increase" in overall spending just to maintain what the WSD already has, he said.
Last year, provincial funding support was virtually frozen for the WSD, and staff are warning it could be the same this year, Wasyliw said.
"A freeze is as good as a cut," he said.
Given how the province and the division share that overall three per cent increase -- about $11 million -- if the WSD has to carry the load alone, "It's a seven or eight per cent tax increase," said Wasyliw.
That's $112 on a house assessed at a value of $200,000.
But, said Wasyliw, "A lot of our parents want us to improve math. The division has put together a strategy to enhance learning in math."
That carries a price tag, but it's not the heftiest potential addition.
"Our parents want us to put in full-day kindergarten -- we'd need at least $6 million," he said.
Finance chairwoman and budget chief trustee Cathy Collins declined to discuss the budget Tuesday.
"I'm not confirming or denying anything. We will be examining everything in January," she said.
Collins said the WSD will hold its usual public forum on the budget at the end of February, about two weeks before the March 15 deadline for boards to set budgets.
Wasyliw said parents are often surprised to learn WSD pays the entire cost of nursery, as well as breakfast and milk programs for many schools in low-income neighbourhoods. The division pumps in $20 million from property taxes to go above and beyond provincial support for special-needs programs.
The division is undergoing huge growth, especially in its northwest, but with that growth last year, "we only hired 25 teachers to cover off 1,000 (additional students)," Wasyliw said. There is no way to maintain adequate student/teacher ratios without significantly increased hiring.
"We need to find new money, and it's not going to come from the province," Wasyliw declared.
There may be major growth downtown, he said, but that's in economic-development zones where property taxes are deferred as an incentive to build: "We're not going to see any new revenue for 20 years."
Wasyliw and division officials said the WSD does not know how much school property tax it will get from the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, or when.
"We don't have an expenditure problem, we have a revenue problem. We need a growth tax -- when the economy expands, we get more money."
But Wasyliw argued the board must be out in the public, engaging residents in policy issues. "I see a shift, that parents are far more political now," he said.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 19, 2012 A3
More Local
- Back to Top
- Return to Local
More Local
(1 of 32 articles for today)
Province's new approach to teaching math long overdue: readers
6:14 PM 0Great job, Nancy, but why did you take so long?
And while you’re at it getting back to math basics, the ...
Poll
Most Popular Local
- Court told driver hysterical after vehicle fatally hit highway worker
- Child in critical condition after West End crash
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- Province blows off wind megawatt goal
- City-wide average mosquito count drops
- Mountie hospitalized, dog euthanized after crash near Saskatoon
- Committee wants report on free replacement for garbage, recycling carts
- Pallister continues PST fight
- Known as kind, outgoing men
- Winnipeg man given 2-year sentence for coma-inducing 'sucker punch'
- Safeway stores likely to close
- Squirrel crawls out of Winnipegger's toilet
- Poolside feeding prompts eviction
- Stoppage of play off the field
- Game-day planning a must
- Court told driver hysterical after vehicle fatally hit highway worker
- No mad dash for concessions
- Kenyan wins Manitoba Marathon
- Traffic heavy as Bomber fans flock to U of M
- Child in critical condition after West End crash
- Father blasts 'horrific' movie
- Safeway stores likely to close
- Man dies after being pulled from vehicle submerged in Winnipeg retention pond
- Flood money paid for CEO's romantic trip
- Car in deadly crash stolen?
- UPDATE: Now with FAQ: Keeping the e-party going without the party-crashers
- Squirrel crawls out of Winnipegger's toilet
- Daycare provider charged with abandonment
- Poolside feeding prompts eviction
- Two people killed in crash north of Winnipeg
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- At 55, I'm wise to what's real in life
- Province blows off wind megawatt goal
- Court told driver hysterical after vehicle fatally hit highway worker
- Strong may they run: Manitobans reflect on that fateful day in Boston
- Mountie hospitalized, dog euthanized after crash near Saskatoon
- Bible Belt's bogeyman still haunts town
- City-wide average mosquito count drops
- Killer 'should stay in prison'
- Known as kind, outgoing men
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- Squirrel crawls out of Winnipegger's toilet
- Safeway stores likely to close
- Doctors blamed for death
- App could give Winnipeggers chance to report bad parking, get paid
- $110-K worth of nickel plates stolen from Thompson mine
- A day in the life of 13,380 Manitoba Marathon participants
- Known as kind, outgoing men
- Stoppage of play off the field
- Bomber fans wowed by new stadium
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- Squirrel crawls out of Winnipegger's toilet
- Developers to unveil plans for bold downtown tower
- Father blasts 'horrific' movie
- Teachers support adding sexual-orientation themes to all curricula
- The crime fighter's revolution
- Safeway stores likely to close
- Car in deadly crash stolen?
- Fishing for fashion
- City's first urban reserve born
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
Have Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?
Login SubscribeHave Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?
SubscribeThe Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.