Referenda C and D
Early voting continues today in Denver .
The Rocky Mountain News editorial staff names their choices in the DPS School Board election [October 18, 2005, "Our choices for Denver school board"]. From the editorial, "At large: Jill Conrad. Conrad is an educational consultant, working on a doctorate, and would bring to the board broad expertise in the issues facing Denver. She has also been active in statewide and national education reform groups. District 2 (southwest): Michelle Moss. Incumbent Moss is a supporter of the district's literacy program to address the problem of high mobility in certain schools. The program has fallen short, she acknowledges, but makes a persuasive argument that with a full complement of literacy coaches now in place, teachers will be able to make progress. District 3 (central): Jeannie Kaplan. This is Kaplan's first run for public office, but she has a long-standing interest in education - 'I used to be the education fanatic around our house,' she said. She is particularly interested in establishing a community atmosphere in the schools, with more activities to keep children interested and also appeal to their parents."
Ed Quillen weighs in on Referendum C in his column in today's Denver Post [October 18, 2005, "
Grudging support for Referendum C"]. He writes, "I've got to figure out how to vote on Referendum C. Giving the state government more money than it would otherwise get almost certainly means more subsidies for big companies, all under the guise of 'economic development,' and I have trouble supporting that when I'm not a stockholder in one of those favored enterprises. The state also keeps wasting money on the War on Drugs, as well as on boondoggles like 'Project Beanpole,' which was supposed to link schools and county seats with high-speed data lines - and to date, I haven't heard of any data flowing through those expensive fiberoptic cables. And, let's face it. Whether Referendum C is technically a 'tax increase' or not, it has the same effect as one. If it passes, the state will not refund money it otherwise would have. We have less money, the state government has more. But the opponents of Referendum C are sure working hard at persuading us to support it. What a bunch. Let's start with Grover Norquist of Washington, D.C., head of an outfit called Americans for Tax Reform. He opposes Referendum C. He has offered to debate the issue with our governor, Bill Owens - in Washington...In other words, if you're stinking rich, your family probably doesn't need our state government. But the rest of us do, and the anti-C crowd doesn't seem to get that. If the 'family values' canard is the best argument they can come up with against Referendum C, then I'm voting for it."
Here's an article about K-12 education funding from the Rocky Mountain News [October 18, 2005, "The ABCs of K-12"]. From the article, "At Pueblo West, there aren't enough books for each student to have one in her science, math and English classes. The books have to stay in the room, unless a student is among the first to request one to check out for homework. So Garcia comes to school early in the morning or stays late after school, hoping for a chance to use a book."
Here's another article from the Rocky about property taxes [October 18, 2005, "Local school funds haven't kept pace"]. From the article, "In the metro area, housing prices have risen 100 percent - or doubled - in the past decade. But the amount of property tax the average homeowner pays toward schools has been flat, rising less than 4 percent, according to (Rudy) Andras. That's why the state is feeling such pressure to meet the growing costs of education. The burden used to look like this: 60 percent paid by local tax revenues, 40 percent by state taxes. Just the opposite is true today. And as the burden on the state was increasing, the 2001 recession was forcing cuts and shrinking the amount of money the state was allowed to spend each year under the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. That 1992 measure allows state spending to increase no more than population growth and inflation."
One more article from the Rocky dealing with funding problems for school districts [October 18, 2005, "It comes down to money"].
The Denver Post fact checks the TV ads around Referendums C and D [October 18, 2005, "Ad Watch, 10/18"].
If money raised were a guarantee of election success November 1st's election deciding the fates for Referendum C and D would be unnecessary. The Denver Post reports that supporters are rolling in dough [October 18, 2005, "Referendums' backers raise over $1 million in 2 weeks"].
Meanwhile voters won't be seeing the Initiative 100 billboards just yet, according to the Rocky Mountain News [October 18, 2005, "Pot backers delay billboards"]. From the article, "Sponsors of a Denver marijuana legalization ballot measure announced Monday that they are delaying the debut of three billboards showing a battered woman. Political leaders and domestic violence advocates had condemned the ads for misleading voters and exploiting the tragedy of abused women. The billboards had been scheduled to appear Monday, but now won't go up for at least three days."
Cateogry: Denver November 2005 Election
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