This is a joke, right?

Please, they must be kidding! The Lenape Regional High School Board of Education adopts a $128.5 million dollar budget and included in this are three ballot questions.

In addition to the $86.8 million general fund tax levy, voters will be asked to decide questions on hiring additional teachers, creating a district-sponsored varsity ice hockey program and building synthetic turf fields in each of the district's four high school stadiums: Lenape, Shawnee, Cherokee & Seneca.

The first question on the ballot seeks funding for an additional 21 mathematics and English teachers at a cost of $1.2 million. Is that a real question? Why ask, the Lenape Regional District prides itself on the “excellent education” it gives our children, why would hiring more teachers, to lower the class rate, actually be a question? If the Regional district is approaching 30 students per class when the state average is 19, this is not a question, this is about better education. I’ll pay the extra $8 to $13 the district is saying this will cost.

On ballot question two, they are asking taxpayers to fund a district sponsored hockey program. Ice hockey is an extremely expensive and time consuming sport, any parent that has a child that plays knows this. I love the game, but how many children this really affects is my question to the BOE. 25 at most, per school, for the low price of $340,000, that’s 100 children. Not worth my tax dollars and no where did the regional district say this is a one time hit.

The third ballot question is to fund synthetic turf fields’ at all four high schools. 5.8 million dollars, a one time expense, supposedly providing a long time savings on maintenance. To take it further, “for the children” studies show fewer injuries are sustained on artificial turf. Really, then why did every football team in the NFL hate Vet’s Stadium? Could it have been the artificial turf? How many careers where ended and knees where blown out because of it? I’m sure there are also studies that say injuries are more likely to occur on artificial turf. I think the regional football teams can survive and excel without the taxpayer shoveling out another $38 to $65 per, depending on which township you live in. (Evesham and Mt. Laurel always pay the most.)

Evesham’s tax rate would rise, if all passes, from 97.3 cents to $1.054 cents per $100 of assesses value. An average increase of $81.00 per property taxpayer, Mt. Laurel brings up the rear with an average increase of $57.00 per property taxpayer.

Just so I make this perfectly clear, the general fund (86.8 million dollars) must be approved for any of the ballot questions to pass. I will say it again, why would hiring more teachers to lower class sizes, when we already pay through the nose for education be a question? Frankly, it feels a little more like blackmail than a ballot question. Nice.