NETHER PROVIDENCE -- A former president of the Wallingford-Swarthmore School Board urged the current board in no uncertain terms to take a pass on state property-tax reduction legislation known as Act 72.
David Grove, a Swarthmore resident who served on the board from 1975 to 1987, said the act would undermine quality education, wrongly rely on gambling revenues to help fund essential government services, might not provide as much as tax relief as promised and could in fact harm property values.
"Act 72 is like a long strip of flypaper, scented with the possibility of an unquantified share of unquantified gambling revenues, luring this and other top-quality Pennsylvania school districts to a slow death," he told the board at a recent meeting.
Grove said he was disturbed to learn the average slot-machine player in Pennsylvania would have to lose roughly $750 a year in order to receive an estimated $330 a year in property tax relief. What’s more, he said, the number of state residents who play the slots would have to double in order to generate anticipated revenues.
Another concern cited was a provision of the legislation requiring districts opting in to the act to subject budgets exceeding the rate of inflation, with a handful of exceptions, to referendum beginning with the 2006-07 fiscal year.
Among other things, such referendums would make it impossible to negotiate multi-year contracts with teachers and other unionized staff members, he asserted.
"In my view if the board were to opt in to Act 72 gambling financing, you would be placing every school board member who comes after you forever in a financial straightjacket which will spell the end of quality education in this school district," Grove said.
He called on the board to spell out the possible consequences to residents.
