Dear Editor
As the bond election approaches, the board president and I would like to continue providing the community with information so citizens can make an informed decision before voting begins. The article published on April 14th contained factual information about the work done before the board made the decision to call for a bond. The graph published with the article was altered by the Van Horn Advocate to include dollar amounts. We advised against this because the percentages are only preliminary budget estimates and are subject to change pending final design stages. Questions are arising about specific areas such as the Gym. This percentage includes the renovation of the existing gym AND construction of a new gym. If citizens have questions about the article, graph or bond, please call the district and allow us to give accurate information.
We would also like to advise citizens that a decision on closing Fannin Street has not been made. The City Council is waiting until after the bond election before making any decisions. This information is being used to scare people in the community, and it is simply not true. Building a new school can be done without closing Fannin Street.
Lastly, we would like to advise the community of the financial implication of the bond election. CCAISD is classified as a Chapter 41 school district by the state. This means the district is considered property rich, and is required to send local tax dollars back to the state of Texas to fund other school districts. This year CCAISD has already begun sending approximately 2.8 MILLION back to TEA. Next year, the school district will be sending back approximately $4 MILLION of local tax dollars. If the citizens of Culberson County pass the bond to build a new school, the district will be able to keep some of those tax dollars locally. The bond is for $30 million with a payout over 25 years. Passing the bond will allow CCAISD to save approximately $25.7 million of recapture over the 25 year period of time. This is not only a decision to provide better educational facilities for our students, but also a decision to keep more tax dollars locally to benefit our community. Information can be found on the TEA website under Summary of Finance “Recapture” report. Please call 432-283-2245 for more information.
Respectfully,
Paul Uranga, Dalia Benavides
Editor’s note: Supt. Benavidez and Board President Paul Uranga’s Letter to the Editor erroneously alleges that The Van Horn Advocate “altered” a graph provided by the school district by including dollar amounts, against their recommendations to use only percentages. The graph depicting dollar amounts was mathematically and accurately extrapolated from the percentage amounts provided by the district. The decision to print dollar amounts was an editorial decision in the interest of providing transparency and complete, factual information regarding an extremely important decision that will impact Van Horn for the next 25 years. As a proud alumnus and former teacher, the editor believes that it is disingenuous to imply that any information would be “altered” in any way, and The Advocate intends to independently report on important issues as the First Amendment encourages us to do so. Any changes in the percentages or dollar amounts will be updated as more information is provided pending passage of the bond issue.
Dear Editor
As CCAISD teachers we work hard to provide the best education for the students of this community. The facility our students learn in is over 60 years old, and we need a new school. We are graciously asking the community to support the bond to build a new school for our students.
Respectfully,
Nancy Gonzales Anna Hinojos
Yolanda Urias Hayley McCoy
Sondra McCoy Victor Nunez
Betty Velez Angelica Garcia
Benita Corralez Nancy Balcazar
Rosa Tarango Allison Espinosa
Brian Gibson Toni Turnbow
Chris Morriss Allison Corralez
Jasmine Tarango Carmen Garibay
Kittie Gibson Juan Martinez
Luz Barrandey Marcia Crowley
Melinda Baeza Priscilla Urias
Julie Balcazar Ysmael Segura
Sooky Borrego Jeff Anderson
Art Sanchez Superintendent Benavides
Herminia Molinar Nancy Borrego
Anna Luna Lorina Gonzalez
Margie Hinojos Florinda Gomez
Luiz Garcia Julie Uranga
Erica Urias Victor Pallarez
Dear Editor
I ask you and your readers to consider;
Vote no to the CCAISD bond
If CCAISD is going to save $24,700,000.00 from “Robinhood” payments; why will taxes have to be increased? The Board borrowed &6,000,000.00 plus for the football field without a bond
Homes and businesses will be the primary tax payers of this bond
The Average ages of the homes to be taxed to pay the bonded debt are older than the schools to be replaced
Current code complaints are bogus; codes do not apply to buildings built before a code was adopted.
Issues with air conditioning, plumbing, electrical, insulation; fire sprinklers and asbestos can all be corrected during a comprehensive remodeling
High costs of building operations are largely due to poor planning, poor maintenance and poor management.
Due to the higher taxes required by the bond, employers will be slower to raise employee wages.
The cost of the school bond will also be an increase in the price of every gallon of gasoline, loaf of bread, tire, auto part and product or service purchased within the CCAISD district as businesses try to cover the increase in tax.
Why not use the &25,700,000.00 saved from “robinhood” to aggressively remodel our existing facilities?
The bond costs too much
Vote No
Thank you for considering my opinion.
– Tim Head
