Today, parents of Beckford Ave. Elementary school will be receiving their monthly newsletter. Inside, they'll find the following editorial by a PTA parent urging ALL PTA members to vote No on Measure S. Rock the Vote Beckford!
By Debbie Lopez
It's another campaign year and another chance for Beckford parents to get involved in the future of not only our country, but locally as well. On February 5th, the Beckford Auditorium will once again be a polling place for the upcoming Presidential Primary election.
Are you registered to vote yet?
The last day to register for the Feb. 5th election is January 22nd. Registering is easy! Just visit: http://www.sos.ca.gov/
"NO on Measure S"
PTAs may be asked to help secure the passage of a school bond or local parcel tax election or to participate in campaigns to pass or defeat other election ballot measures.
One of the Purposes of the PTA is "to secure adequate laws for the care and protection of children and youth." It is by educating its members — and through them, the general public — on the impact of issues affecting children and youth, that PTAs can best influence the course of action of those who make policy decisions, thereby achieving the Purposes of the PTA. Measure S (the "Cell Phone Tax 'Reduction'"), as written, applies an unfair tax to voters, as we will be charged 9%, while telemarketers (grrr… who call you as you sit down to dinner) will only be charged 5%.
This places an unfair burden on families who rely on cell phones to keep in touch with (and keep tabs on!) their children. The Northridge West Neighborhood Council voted to take a position AGAINST Measure S. The Neighborhood Council agreed with the COURT OF APPEAL OF CALIFORNIA, SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT, DIVISION TWO, who ruled that the current cell phone tax the city is collecting is a violation of Prop. 218, passed by California voters in 1996. By voting NO, the current tax goes away. A YES vote enables City Hall to tax you for using the internet, wireless networks, text messaging, instant messaging, VoIP and similar services.
As a high-performing school, Beckford is not eligible to receive funding (such as Title 1 funds) that we so desperately need. Our Valley neighborhoods contribute a substantial amount in tax revenue each year to the City's General Fund. That is where the money from Prop S. will be going. There is nothing in the wording of Measure S. that specifically binds these funds to things like additional police and fire units. Voters can't ever really be sure exactly where and HOW those General Fund dollars are going to be spent. Unfortunately, we don't see too much of it coming back into the Valley in the way of help for our schools.
If it were not for the generosity, the hard work, the endless hours of volunteering, the commitment, the love and support of our Beckford families, we would not have the funding for many of the wonderful educational programs here at Beckford. Perhaps it's time to take a stand, Valley Families.
How about we just vote NO on Measure S, and instead make a donation to the Bell Fund, or take your sweetie on a date to our "Ace of Hearts" fundraising gala? Money wisely spent, and guaranteed to be used for the betterment of our school and our children's education. PLEASE COME TO OUR PTA ASSOCIATION MEETING ON JAN. 22 AND LEARN MORE!!
Beckford PTA will be encouraging ALL Valley PTAs to join us in voting NO on S. Additionally, in lieu of dumping tea into the L.A. River, we are also asking that at the same time members are voting NO, to send a donation to their PTAs instead of Measure S taxes to the City's General Fund. This way, members can be assured that their hard-earned dollars are going directly to schools instead of lining the coffers of the "Bermuda Triangle" that is the General Fund.
We wil be speaking at the montly PTA President's Meeting later this month, and asking our PTA Council to please circulate the above editorial to each of the schools in the area, and to send it home in their newsletters.
NO ON S AND SUPPORT OUR SCHOOLS! PLEASE VOTE NO AND SEND A DONATION TO YOUR LOCAL PTA. OUR SCHOOLS NEED THE MONEY MORE THAN THE CITY, AND WE'LL SPEND IT MORE WISELY, TOO!
Debbie Lopez is a community activist, PTA leader and mom in the North Valley.
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