Kettering City Schools are asking voters to vote “Yes” on May 5 for a 6.9 mill renewal levy. The yard signs, around Kettering, say, “Vote YES, May 5, Kettering City Schools, ZERO Increase In Taxes.”

This advertisement, to me, says that there is an absolute guarantee that if this 6.9 mill renewal levee is passed, there will be a ZERO increase in a property’s “effective” tax rate. But, as I found out today, by talking with Marty Moore of the County Auditor’s Office, this claim is very likely not true.  What actually is guaranteed is that the school district will continue to raise $8.2 million each year from this levy, regardless that property values in the school district might decline.   But, in order to raise this guaranteed revenue, if total valuation of the district declines, then the “effective” tax rate, in fact, will go up in order to raise the $8.2 million.

Ms Moore says that, anymore, she frequently hears the question from property owners: “How is it that my property value went down, but my taxes went up?”

In Kettering, the total valuation of the District is declining and nobody, in the short term, believes that this slide in valuation will stop anytime soon. By approving this five year levy, it is a safe bet that voters are unwittingly approving an increase in taxes. This may be a small increase, but, it will be an increase, nevertheless. It is not ZERO, as the signs say. It seems to me, it is incumbent on school officials and the board of education members to correct the false claim that, by approving this 6.9 mill renewal levy, there is a guarantee of a ZERO tax rate increase.

The 6.9 mill Kettering School renewal levy, right now, raises $8.2 million by taxing at an “effective rate” of 6.162 mills. But, if property values decrease, this “effective rate” will need to increase in order to raise that same $8.2 million.

Kettering voters are being asked to agree to the proposition that, if needed, this current “effective rate” of 6.162 mills could increase to as much as 6.9 mills. If total Kettering property values diminish to the point that the 6.9 mills fails to raise the expected $8.2 million, then, since this is not designated as an “emergency levy,” additional increases in millage will not occur, and the school district’s revenue will decrease.

The ballot language Kettering voters are being asked to approve says, “A renewal of a tax for the benefit of the Kettering City School District FOR THE PURPOSE OF CURRENT EXPENSES at a rate not exceeding six and nine-tenths (6.90) mills for each one dollar ($1.00) of valuation … for a period of five years, commencing in 2009, first due in calendar year 2010.”

In order for the Kettering Board to make an authentic guarantee of ZERO increase in taxes, it would needed to have guaranteed that the current “effective rate” of 6.162 mills would never be increased.  The board should have offered a replacement levy of 6.162 mills. The 6.9 mill renewal levy allows for a .738 mill increase — the gap between what the effective tax rate now is (6.162 mills) and what the effective tax rate could become (6.9 mills).  Before the five years expire, it could well be, if total district valuation plunges, that approving this renewal levy, voters are agreeing, if needed, to allow taxes to rise .738 mills, a 12% increase,  a long way from ZERO.

Someone told me, “It’s like, if I told my wife she could spend up to $1000 — I would have little hope that she would spend less.”

The 6.9 mill renewal levy can never exceed 6.9 mills — an increase of 12% of its current effective rate of 6.162 mills — but, still, a definite ceiling.  But there is no limitation as to how much bond levies can increase. Kettering City Schools passed a bond levy in 2006 for 3.6 mills. It is now 4.5 mills. A bond levy guarantees a fixed payment amount each year. If tax revenues decrease because of decreased property value, the tax rate must increase so that revenue is sufficient to service the debt. Kettering voters in 2006 approved a school bond issue of 3.6 mills for the purpose of borrowing $102 million to pay for school facilities improvement. Ms. Moore says that, because of the decrease in total Kettering valuation, the 3.6 mills was not raising enough revenue to make the loan payments.  The tax rate was increased by 25%, to 4.5 mills.

In 2007, according to Ms Moore, the total valuation in Kettering was $1,424,287,702; in 2008, the total valuation was $1,396,394,393; in 2009, the total valuation was $1,354,338,690. This is a 4.9% decline in three years. Lower valuation means tax rates must increase, and the tax increase is shown in the “effective tax rate.” The 6.9 mill tax, in 2006 had an effective rate of 6.14 mills; in 2007 it had an effective rate of 6.13 mills; in 2008, it had an effective rate of 6.16 mills.

In 2007, the owner of a home appraised at $100,000 would have paid tax on $35,000 at a rate of $6.13 per thousand for $214.55. In 2008, a taxpayer with a home appraised at $100,000 would have paid at the rate of $6.16 per thousand for $215.60, an increase of $1.05. By approving a renewal level, voters are agreeing to allow yearly incremental tax increases to continue.

Approving this levy, because of the trend of decreasing property values — Ms Moore emphasized the impact of GM leaving the Kettering District — it is a safe bet that taxes will continue to creep up. The maximum a $100,000 property could be taxed, if this renewal is approved, is $6.90 per thousand or $241.50, an increase of $26.95 per year over what a $100,000 property is taxed today.

I supposed that Kettering Schools would have an up to date web-site that would have a detailed explanation of the 6.9 mill renewal levy. There is not a peep. I supposed that the web-site would have PDF files of reports made at the last board of education meeting. Nothing. I called the Board Office and was connected to the Treasurer, Steve Clark. I had an long telephone conversation with Mr. Clark. He was very gracious. He said that I could come into the board office and pick up copies of reports. He said that according to state law, the school district is only required to keep a video copy of its meetings.

I said that I was surprised that a school district that prides itself on greatly exceeding state minimums in its overall school program would think it appropriate that state minimums should guide the policies and procedures it uses to inform and engage the public.

I did go into the board office today and met with Mr. Clark. I also met Ms Julie Gilmore a board member — who brought a paper copy of her report to the office, so I could have a copy. Ms Gilmore’s report tells how the money is spent. It has a lot of interesting statistics that originally I had intended on analyzing in this article, a topic I may return to at some later time.

The secretary said she would make a PDF and e-mail me. And she did. I had assumed that Ms Gilmore’s report would be on the internet so that any Kettering voter who might want to read it would have easy access. Instead, in order to get her report, I had to make a phone call, wait a day, get in my car, find the board building, find an office down a labyrinth of hallways, and make a second request to Mr Clark before Ms Gilmore was telephoned.

It shouldn’t be so hard for a citizen to get information. I expressed my frustrations to Ms. Gilmore and she was very gracious, saying, that yes, it would seem a good idea to put on the web-site Board reports given in board meetings, and that she would discuss the matter with other board members.

I met with Mr. Clark and Ms. Gilmore today, before I had my long telephone conversation with Marty Moore in the Auditor’s Office and discovered the facts I report in this article.  So, we didn’t discuss the facts in this report.  I intend on giving Mr. Clark and Ms Gilmore, and other Kettering school officials, a link to this article and ask for their response.  In my view, Kettering school leaders are simply wrong to approve levy advertisement that promises that the 6.9 mill renewal levy will result in a ZERO increase in taxes. This is a tough realization for me, since I normally am a big supporter of schools. I need to consider seriously if this is one school levy I should vote against as a means to express my disapproval of misleading advertisement.

Monday, April 20, my brother-in-law and long time friend of 50 years, Jim Dunaway, Associate Minister of Centerville Methodist Church, passed away. His obituary and details of his visitation and funeral can be seen here.

We all knew that Jimmy’s time was short, but kept hoping that maybe his passing could be yet delayed. His last several days he nose dived. On Monday his wife of 50 years, my sister, Carole, his three sons — David, Dan, and Matt — his son’s wives, his brother-in-laws, gathered by his bed at Bethany Luthern. Patty, our long time friend, and Steven, pastor of Centerville Methodist, also were there. The wonderful nurses from Hospice told us Jim’s time had come.

Together, we read scripture and sang gospel songs. Steven and Patty read several beautiful passages, including Psalm 23, “The Lord is my shepherd….” I was on the verge of suggesting we read to Jim the great thoughts about love in Corinthians — one big theme emphasized in Jimmy’s ministry has been the power and reality of unconditional love — and I was awestruck when, instead, Patty began to read a scripture that starts with a painful lament, a terrible thought, Psalm 22, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”, the scripture Christ quoted on the cross. I had never listened to the words so carefully. The Psalm continues, “I am poured out like water, and all of my bones are out of joint … My strength is dried up … But be not far from me, O Lord, my strength, hasten to help me.”

The last to arrive was Danny, and it seemed after Danny got there, Jimmy acknowledged him and became more relaxed. Carole later said Jim was waiting for Dan. Jimmy’s breathing grew ever weaker and, as we were singing, “What A Friend We Have In Jesus,” Jim left us quietly, reverently. He was at rest. We were all in tears. We all had a profound sense of gratitude that it should end in such a way. It was a feeling that, on the day Jim went home, God had granted us a great favor by allowing things to come together as they had.

Jimmy was a Methodist minister for over 50 years. He started preaching when he was still a student at Asbury College. When he finally retired, he became an Associate Minister for Centerville Methodist, working a lot with the youth of the church. For the last two and one half years, Jim has been battling cancer that started in his prostate.

It had been a cold, rainy day. We got back to the house in south Dayton in the early afternoon, and Becky, David’s wife, returned to Columbus. Becky telephoned several hours later and said that over their house in Columbus was a beautiful complete rainbow. She said it was like Papa was smiling at them. We went outside and found the sun was shining amid a light drizzle, and, sure enough, in the sky shone a beautiful rainbow. We were all amazed. (I stole the rainbow pictures on this post are off the internet — but the one in Dayton today was very spectacular.) My niece, Jennifer, who lives in Lexington, knew nothing about the rainbows in Dayton and Columbus. But she sent a text message and said that in Lexington, there was a beautiful rainbow. It was like Jimmy was smiling at her, she said.

Such a strange mixture of emotion, when tears mean many different things and all at the same time. It hurts. But when the time came to let him go, through it all, God’s grace hastened to help us.  Jim leaves eleven grandchildren and a multitude of people to whom, throughout his life, he showed the light of unconditional love. His is a life well lived. He fought a good fight, he finished the course, he kept the faith.  Jim Dunaway has been a big part of my life for the last 50 years. He is a great friend, and I am going to miss him very very much.

I made it to the big Dayton Tea Party yesterday for part of the Court House Square rally, but left early.  I missed the Seth Morgan finale.  Big crowd. I finally found a parking spot at Democratic HQ on Wilkerson.  A policeman I asked estimated the crowd at 8000 people. To get so many to show up to a rally is impressive.

Kimberly Fletcher, dressed as if for the original tea party.

I heard Kimberly Fletcher’s rousing speech. That has to be fun — giving punch line after punch line to a cheering crowd. She condemned both Democrats and Republicans. (cheer, cheer). She said the people must take back their government (cheer, cheer). She said we hired them and we could also fire them (cheer, cheer) And that was just the warm up. She was interrupted repeatedly with applause. Her speech is a good model of Tea-Bagger thinking and when it is posted on the Dayton Teaparty website, I intend on excerpting it here. The content of her ideas deserves to be discussed. Claims and complaints in her speech are reflected in the signs shown below.

Fletcher is a dynamic speaker and I’m wondering if she has political ambitions. She is founder of a conservative group called Homemakers for America. According to her bio, “Kimberly has been heard on numerous regional and national TV and radio programs including the Sean Hannity Show and her articles have appeared American Thinker and Worldnetdaily. Kimberly and Derek have 8 children and have been homeschooling parents for 9 years. They currently live in Clayton Ohio.”

I also heard an impassioned speech by Kate Burch. Her bio says she is a retired clinical psychologist and aspiring fiber artist, a mother and proud grandmother, and that she, husband and two cats live in Oakwood. Burch spoke rhapsodically about the wonders of the Fair Tax. She started her speech with a litany of questions — each soliciting an audience response: “How would you like to never pay Income Tax ever again?” (Yeah, Yes, cheer, cheer) “How would you like to decide how much tax you will pay?” (Cheer, cheer) “How would you like to get rid of the IRS?” (Yes, Cheer, Cheer)

I found myself getting ever more amused at the acceleration of the absurdity in her questions and found myself chuckling out loud at the thought of what she might say next: “How would you like to live on Sugar Mountain?” Wow. (Cheer, cheer)

This crowd was having fun. You expect a rally to hep people up to new levels of enthusiasm. But, eventually, our huge and complicated problems require rational dialogue. The speeches I heard from Fletcher and Burch were Rah Rah Rah. The underlying, but unasked, question, posed by this rally is: Can we get our democracy to work? Can we have a government of the people, for the people? Can we have a country where average citizens can share in the great prosperity of this country? Getting our democracy to work will requires a process of hard work, with many people committed to building community and to participating in authentic problem solving. Many people who now see themselves as Tea-Baggers, I’m thinking, might be won over to meaningfully participate in the long term process that building our democracy requires.

Fletcher and Burch, and other Tea-Baggers, can have an attitude to raise hell, to ridicule, to threaten. They project an attitude of self righteous assurance that they have the answers, but maybe that attitude came more from the rally setting, than their own dispositions. I heard more than one Howard Beal assertion: “We’re not going to take it anymore.” But after rousing speeches, what, really do the Tea-Baggers have in mind doing? Throwing tantrums? Marching in the streets? What if they find that 70% of Americans simply reject their point of view? Can they accept the verdict of democracy?

At the Tea-Bagger rally I heard the cheer: USA. USA. USA. The USA the Tea-Baggers want is a USA with small government, few regulations, low taxes, free market. I’m wondering if these grassroots activists, who cared enough to show up at a downtown rally, could begin to buy into a different view of the USA?  Could they begin to see something more important than low taxes?  How about democracy?  Isn’t democracy more important than low taxes?  The ascendant view of the USA, I believe, I hope, that more and more people will want to support is a view that sees the USA as a place where “the people” work together to build democracy, build community, build dialogue, build the Common Good, a USA in which everyone can lead a secure and prosperous life — not a USA where a 30% minority somehow manages to impose its will on the majority.

I saw some great signs: