Another lawsuit against FAIR plan
This just came in:
ROCHESTER, N.Y. October 29, 2007 – A group of Monroe County taxpayers, with support from New York State United Teachers, today filed a lawsuit in Monroe County Supreme Court seeking to halt an attempt by county legislators to divert funds intended for local schools.
The plaintiffs, who are taxpayers and educators active in the Monroe County Education Coalition campaign to prevent school cuts, say that by diverting sales-tax revenues that had been intended for schools, Monroe County would violate state tax laws, the county’s statutory responsibilities for the cost of social services, and several county revenue-sharing agreements. The suit also charges that the County Legislature intentionally failed to provide the media with adequate notice of the September 26th meeting at which the plan was passed, in clear violation of the Open Meetings Law.
Plaintiff Karen Arthmann, president of the paraprofessionals chapter of the Rush Henrietta Education Association, said that if the county’s plan goes forward, “It will reverberate in the classroom and in its impact on local property taxes.â€
Plaintiff Neil Czerniak, president of the Brockport Teachers
Association and father of two elementary school students, questioned
the rushed timing of the action, noting the county executive’s evident
hurry to call a last-minute meeting without time for public
input. “The county executive hatched this plan, which is essentially a
shell game with taxpayer dollars, and called a meeting without
allowing for discussion or debate by the community or by the press,â€
Czerniak said.Plaintiff Beverly Fisher, president of the Association of Greece Central Education Professionals (AGCEP) and a Greece district resident, pointed out that her district would be very heavily hit by the plan. “Greece had an increase in state aid that could only be spent for specific program changes. This plan will mean a loss of almost $6 million every year. Greece will have to cut programs and services.â€
Attorneys from NYSUT, the parent union of the Monroe County Federation of Teachers, are providing legal representation to the plaintiffs. This is the second lawsuit filed in a matter of days challenging the county’s “Medicaid Swap†that would divert $29 million in tax dollars earmarked for the schools. The Monroe County Schools Boards Association filed suit Wednesday, charging the county plan violates tax law. The taxpayers’ lawsuit filed today breaks new ground in challenging the county legislature’s action as a breach of the Open Meetings Law.
NYSUT President Richard C. Iannuzzi said the statewide union strongly supports the campaign by educators, parents, and school board members seeking to reverse this policy.
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