A summary of the news for March 2003.

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March 2003

March 2

Flanagan defeated Fieldcrest 57-52 in the Class A Regional semifinals at El Paso Thursday night to end the Knights season with a 19-8 record. Eric Heider led Fieldcrest with 23 points while Shaun Manning had 13 points and Josh Baker added 8 points.
Fieldcrest board members Tom Barth and Pat Schmillen presented the school district's case for a tax increase to the Minonk City Council at their normal Monday night meeting. Schmillen said that 60% of the school districts in the state this year will be facing a budget deficit and 80% will face a deficit next year. Reductions in state spending necessitates that the school district either raise the maximum tax rate by .90 or cut expenses or do both. She pointed out that Fieldcrest's operating expenditure per student was $6,574 compared to the state average of $7,926. Also, the school's teachers salaries averaged $40,177 compared to the state average of $49,702.

Schmillen said that Fieldcrest has not levied at the highest rate in 9 out of the last 12 years. She said if the tax referendum is passed in April, it does not necessarily mean that the maximum tax rate will be used. If enough cuts can be made, the maximum tax rate will not be needed. Below is a list of how much taxes will increase if the tax referendum is passed.
Farmland
Annual Increase

40 acres - 100.08
80 acres - 200.16
120 acres - 300.24
160 acres - 400.32
200 acres - 500.40

Home Values
Annual Increase

$40,000 - 120.00
$60,000 - 180.00
$80,000 - 240.00
$100,000 - 300.00
$120,000 - 360.00
$140,000 - 420.00

March 9

The City of Minonk had a new
fire truck delivered on February 13. The new International truck is a combination tanker/pumper. Volunteer fireman Paul Vallow said that the new truck costs $192,000 of which $72,000 was paid by an Illinois First grant. Vallow said that the new truck already has a recall on it that will require the replacement of a truck part. He said that the part should be replaced within the next week as soon as the part is delivered.

The new truck can hold 3,000 gallons of water and will be used primarily for rural fires where there is no ready water supply. Vallow said the new truck is definitely state of the art with most of the controls, including acceleration, operated through a digital panel.


A large crowd attended the open house of the newly completed addition to the Fieldcrest Elementary South school on Johnson Street. Raffle tickets were sold for gift baskets made by each of the grades in the school. Over 500 tickets were sold for a supper sponsored by the PTO. All proceeds will go toward the purchase of playground equipment.

For more pictures of the open house, click here.


The Fieldcrest Board of Education is asking voters to approve an increase of $.90 in their education fund tax rate on April 1 to alleviate te financial crisis for more than just the short term. "A school district can seek temporary relief by issuing working cash bonds or tax anticipation warrants," said Fieldcrest Board President Joe Knapp. "We would prefer to find a more long term and economically prudent solution to the current budget crisis." He explained that issuing working cash bonds to cover current budget deficits can result in taxes that remain on local property tax bills long after the borrowing money is spent. In addition, the cost uncurred by taxpayers is compounded by the interest charges on the bonds. Although tax anticipation warrants allow school districts to use next year's taxes to pay current outstanding bills, Knapp said that this practice could push the district into an even more critical financial situation in subsequent years, which can result in placement on the state's financial watch list.

Although home values have continued to rise, farmland values in Illinois have been constant or dropping over the past few years. As a result, the Estimated Assessed Valuation (EAV) on which property taxes are based and upon which school revenues depend, has begun to level off. Coupled with increasing education costs and a decrease in the financial help supplied to local districts by the state through the General State Aid Fund, Fieldcrest is feeling the pinch. Fieldcrest is not alone; over 80% of Illinois schools will deficit spend during the next school year.

"Conservative spending has allowed Fieldcrest to operate with the lowest overall tax rate and the second lowest education fund rate in the Midstate Conference," said Knapp. Fieldcrest's education fund, which accounts for almost 80% of the district's expenses, pays for teachers, books, and most of the direct educational costs. The Fieldcrest district has an operating expenditure of $6,574 per student, compared to the Illinois average of $7,926, a difference of over $1,350 per pupil. Knapp said these figures illustrate Fieldcrest's history of fiscal restraint and further demonstrate the need for a tax rate increase.

The Fieldcrest Board of Education is also looking at a long list of spending cuts and fee increases to help offset the widening gap between revenues and expenses. "The proposed tax rate increase is a maximum rate," Knapp explained. "If EAV's rise or the State of Illinois fully funds education, the Fieldcrest Board does not have to levy at the full rate." Since the formation of the Fieldcrest district in 1992, the Board of Education has levied below Fieldcrest's maximum allowable rate 9 out of 12 years.

The current education fund rate was set 12 years ago and has provided adequate revenue for the district longer than anticipated. Dr. Michael Stagliano, Fieldcrest Superintendent, said that receipt of the last two state aid payments for the current year are rumored to be reduced or even withheld. "This would result in a loss of revenue in excess of $185,000 for the district. Even the district's sound financial practices over the last 12 years can not continue to offset general state aid losses of this magnitude."

March 16

March 23



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