Education Millage: Funds for special
education on way to approval
by Chastity Pratt, Detroit
Free Press, August 7, 2002
Residents in Wayne County
voted Tuesday on whether to raise taxes to support educational
programs for handicapped children. With 63 percent of precincts
reporting, 54 percent favored it, 46 percent voted no.
Of the 712 precincts that
had not reported by press time, 631 were in Detroit where the
proposal was winning by a margin of 2 to 1.
Ballot Proposal K sought
to add a 1.5-mill tax for special education services, which would
cost $150 per year for the owner of a home valued at $200,000.
Most voters interviewed
Tuesday outside of polling places in Detroit and Livonia said they
approved the proposal.
"It's the right thing to
do. The welfare of kids in the state of Michigan is poor, so why
take away from something that is already short?" said Anne Marie
Greene of Livonia.
The Wayne County Regional
Educational Service Agency coordinates the distribution of federal
and county special education money for the 34 school districts
countywide.
Wayne RESA lobbied to get
the proposal on the ballot in hopes of raising $59 million annually.
About 8,000 handicapped
students are educated in school districts in Wayne County. Half
attend Detroit Public Schools.
Erin James, 33, of
Detroit said her sister was in special education classes, so she
voted for it."You don't want people with disabilities to suffer,"
she said.
Local school districts
have said the money would help avoid cuts to general education
programs. Detroit Public Schools spent $14 million to educate
handicapped students during the 2001-02 school year and expected
that to be $17 million next year.
Jill Lauterbach of
Livonia said the money would help all students. "We've cut programs,
music programs and others. We need to bring in the extra funding so
we won't have to take it out of regular education."
Robert Tyus, 66, of
Detroit said he did not vote for it.
"Special education kids
need it, but is the money going for that?" he said.
Dave Goeddeke, 52, of
Livonia was not deterred by a tax increase.
"Education should be
supported in any way we can," he said. "Even though I'm not assured
that the money will be spent the way I'd like, it's a better
investment than jails."
