Fire Station No. 6: A Contrarian Argument

As I was driving to work westward on the Athens bypass one morning last week at about 8:15, I noticed a series of three fire department vehicles (two engines and another rescue-type vehicle) complete with lights flashing and sirens wailing, coming down the ramp from North Avenue headed east on the bypass toward Old Hull Road. I assume they were dispatched from Fire Station No. 1 on College Avenue. Though I do not know precisely where the fire engines were heading, it appeared to be toward the Athens Technical College and Athena Industrial park area – you know, right where the closed Fire Station No. 6 is located.

Of course this immediately aroused my interest, as I (apparently) have been the only person in Clarke County concerned about the obvious gap in local fire protection created by the indefinite closing of Fire Station No. 6 – which has now been vacant for four full months with no projected reopening in sight.

My concern was how the indefinite closing of a station would affect property insurance ratings – a question that proved quite a chore to answer. Over the course of the past few weeks, I spoke to all manner of folks in all manner of places. To make a very long story short, I eventually got hold of a real live person in the “mitigation” section of the Insurance Services Office (ISO) regarding its Public Protection Classification ratings, the group that to a large part determines what I pay for property insurance. I was told that information pertaining to the ratings was “proprietary” and that I would have to go through the local fire chief in order for them to talk to me.

That being the case, I had an informative chat with Chief Iby George of the Athens-Clarke County Fire & Emergency Services Department a week ago today.

The gist of that conversation is that the Unified Government has until 10 June to submit its application for that “economic stimulus” grant it wants from the Obama Administration to rebuild Fire Station No. 6 (of course, one may argue as to how this constitutes economic stimulus in any meaningful manner – as opposed to routine government spending – but that is another matter concerning which I did not quiz the good chief). About 30 days after that, the folks down at City Hall should then know whether the grant will be forthcoming.

If the grant does not come through and the Unified Government elects to repair the existing roof, the process to make the station fully operational again should take from six to nine months after the bid process is completed (partial operations could resume somewhat sooner). Even if one assumes the most optimistic of circumstances, Fire Station No. 6 will be closed for more than a full year at the very least.

If, on the other hand, the Unified Government secures its desired federal largesse, demolition of the existing structure and building of a new station is expected to take between 18 and 24 months after the bid process is completed (as it was explained to me, the grant has a limit of three years). Given that scenario, Fire Station No. 6 may be closed for more than three years.

The prospect of such an extended closure is what prompted my concern in the first place. I am told that, given the distribution of the county’s other fire stations, the absence of Fire Station No. 6 should not affect “prescribed” response times to a significant degree, certainly not enough to cause concern. The nearest stations are Fire Station No. 1 on College Avenue and Fire Station No. 9 on Danielsville Road though, in my opinion, it is a long haul from either to the more remote portions of the county formerly served by Fire Station No.6.

Apparently, as long as the prescribed response times are theoretically maintained though other stations and Fire Station No. 6 is back in operation at the time of the Department’s ten-year ISO renewal, no one seems to share my concerns as to its lengthy closure. To me, at least, this calls the accuracy and utility of the ISO’s ratings into serious question – but that is just me.

Also, I am told that Clarke County has agreements with regard to neighboring “mutual aid responders,” which means the volunteer fire departments in Winterville, Madison County, Oglethorpe County, etc. No disrespect intended, but if a school (e.g. Winterville Elementary School, Coile Middle School, Athens Technical College) or an industry (e.g. Nakanishi Manufacturing, Certainteed, Carrier Transicold, Invista, Merial Limited, Noramco) or some other such structure in the Clarke County hinterland goes up in flames, I’m not counting on much help from a volunteer fire department located half an hour away (okay, the one in Winterville is local, but the point remains).

For those interested, I confirmed that Fire Station No. 10, located at Athens-Ben Epps Airport, is operated as part of the airport rather than as part of the Fire & Emergency Services Department. Its staff and equipment are required for the conduct of flight operations, so neither leave the airport’s property.

With the caveat that I think that repairs should be made to the existing structure so as to get Fire Station No. 6 operational again as soon as possible, that station being the closest one to a large portion of the county’s industries and to those homes and schools in the northeastern part of the county, here comes the contrarian argument:

1. If Fire Station No. 6 is a vital part of the county’s fire protection system (as the Unified Government’s intention to either repair or rebuild it – not to mention common sense – would indicate), the objective should be getting the station back up and running as soon as possible. Thus repairing the roof of the existing station would be the correct course of action.

2. If Fire Station No. 6 is not a vital part of the county’s fire protection system (as its closure for a period that may well stretch into years – and the claim that such an absence does not substantially degrade the level of fire protection across the county – would indicate), why repair or rebuild the station at all? Why not save the taxpayers a substantial sum by permanently closing the station?

It seems to me that the Unified Government is maintaining diametrically opposed positions merely because it may have the opportunity to get a new fire station on someone else’s dime. But of course, all of those government dimes, be they local, state, or federal, ultimately come from the same pocket don’t they?

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Appointed Boards of Education?

This is going to be another of those long, seemingly rambling posts in which I (hopefully) tie together various education topics to make a larger, albeit familiar, point.

Back on 11 June, I caught the weekly Athens News Matters program on WUGA radio, our local NPR affiliate. The program, hosted by WUGA news director Mary Kay Mitchell, featured executive editor Jason Winders and editorial editor Jim Thompson of the Banner-Herald, and Flagpole editor Pete McCommons.

One of the duo from the daily newspaper – sorry, I do not recall which – noted that the per pupil spending for the Clarke County School District was “somewhere around $10,000.” Actually, the figure for FY 2008 was $11,180.05, which places the CCSD in about the 95th percentile of school systems statewide in terms of per pupil expenditures; this underestimate amounted to a not insignificant 11.8%. Folks from One Press Place should cite such figures correctly, as they routinely lift them from this humble blog.

Of course, the trio repeated without critical examination the shibboleth that the CCSD has had to increase its portion of the local property tax millage rate because of state budget cuts. Hardly. The problem here in Clarke County is that education spending has increased at a truly breathtaking pace over the past several years; it is true that the state’s contribution to the CCSD’s total budget has decreased in relative terms to that of local funds – but this is a function of local spending increasing to such a great degree irrespective of the sources of its funding. If state budget cuts necessarily resulted in increased millage rates on the part of local school districts, that phenomenon would have been apparent and consistent across the state for a long time. That, demonstrably, has not been the case.

Of more interest to me, however, was a idea put forth by Mr. McCommons, who suggested that members of the Clarke County Board of Education be appointed rather than elected. His position was that the current Board was “lacking in credibility” and needed to be changed due to not pursuing a local referendum so as to exceed the 20 mills limit imposed by the state Constitution in the absence of such a vote. In other words, elected Board members should be replaced with appointed members because the former are not spending enough money.

This assertion startled me. While I firmly believe that some members of the Board are in over their depth and need to be replaced, the idea that they should be sacked because they have not shown a willingness to spend money in a profligate manner is patently absurd.

An aside for the nerdy types out there. The current method of selecting Board members and school system superintendents, by election and appointment respectively, derives from a 1996 amendment to the state Constitution (Article VIII, Section V, Paragraphs II and III); for the legislative details see O.C.G.A. (Title 20, Chapter 2, Article 3, Sections 51 and 56).

The problem is that we have tried overspending for a long time . . . and it does not work worth a damn. As yet another proof of that, the CCSD’s CRCT scores for 2009 are out, the results of which were as predictably poor as those of its high school graduation tests released a few weeks ago.

Below are the CCSD’s "did not meet standard" scores for the three grade levels covered in the Banner-Herald article, followed by the corresponding figures for the state at large (as I recall, ELA stands for English/Language Arts):

Third grade
Reading 21.2% (state average 12.0%)
ELA 22.0% (state average 13.5%)
Math 30.4% (state average 22.1%)
Science 27.2% (state average 20.3%)
Social Studies 30.6% (state average 24.0%)

Fifth grade
Reading 22.5% (state average 12.1%)
ELA 17.0% (state average 8.7%)
Math 32.0% (state average 20.7%)
Science 32.4% (state average 24.0%)
Social Studies 47.1% (state average28.8%)

Eighth grade
Reading 13.3% (state average 7.3%)
ELA 16.4% (state average 8.2%)
Math 42.6% (state average 29.9%)
Science 54.8% (state average 35.6%)
Social Studies 48.2% (state average 37.4%)

So, even though the CCSD spends far more that the state average on education, its CRCT scores for the five areas measured in these three grades come in at an astounding 0 for 15 insofar as exceeding the state average is concerned – and we want to change the method of selecting Board members because they don’t waste enough money now?

Finally, see this commentary by Cal Thomas in the Washington Times. He observes that the concept of higher expenditures necessarily resulting in higher academic achievement is demonstrably false; though his examples concern specific situations where increased spending was the result of judicial mandates, the principle is applicable generally as well. Of course, I’ve been making this same point at the local level for some years now – to no avail whatsoever.

Here in self-consciously progressive Athens-Clarke County, the proposed solution to any given problem, be it real or perceived, is either more government or more money (or better yet, a combination thereof). The fact that we have years of experience that reveal this approach as sheer folly matters not a whit – actual results are irrelevant, ideology is all that matters. You know, kind of like what is happening up in D.C. these days.

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Short Circuit

I thought that the concept of a property tax “circuit breaker,” which would serve to link property taxes to a homeowner’s income, was a bad idea when it was first proposed back in 2006; I still think that it is a bad idea (see here, here, here, here and here).

So while I support the concept of property tax relief, I think that a much better approach would be the “floating” homestead exemption that was part of my campaign platform when running for District 1 back in 2006; treating all owner-occupied homes in the county equally makes much more sense to me than divvying up property tax liability on the basis of income.

But, of course, treating citizens equally is not part of the progressive ethos, whereas identity politics is. Because of the heavy leftward tilt in Athens-Clarke County politics, such a measure might actually be approved in a local referendum – but I cannot imagine that any such local legislation would make it through the General Assembly anytime soon (at least I hope not).

And just how may we recoup the revenue that may be lost through a circuit breaker? By reductions in spending? Not a chance. By increasing the property tax on those not targeted by this plan, that is how.

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Winterville Goes Old School (literally)

The City of Winterville has “purchased” the old high school and auditorium buildings located within its confines from the Clarke County School District for a token payment of $1 (see here and here).

The property is supposedly worth “more than $1 million.” So why would the financially-strapped folks on Mitchell Bridge Road – to hear them tell it, anyway – willingly sell CCSD property for less than 0.0001% of its market value (I’m familiar with the buildings in question and that figure seems absurdly high to me, but that is a another matter).

The probable reason why the CCSD was happy to dump its property on someone else for a token payment is because the buildings have not been used for ages and represented huge, and growing, maintenance and liability problems.

What I cannot see is why the Winterville municipal government was so eager to take the property. Yes, I understand about civic pride, nostalgia, and wanting to have a place for various functions. But, to me, the potential financial down side of this transaction is enormous. According to the Banner-Herald:

The school district had earmarked $500,000 in special-purpose, local-option sales tax to renovate the buildings, but that money wasn't enough to do all that was needed to restore the buildings, [interim superintendent] Simms said in 2005.

So how much will such restoration require now? How much will be incurred in ongoing maintenance and operations expenses? How much will be required for liability insurance coverage? More importantly, how will all of this revenue be raised in a town with approximately 1000 residents?

Winterville property owners currently pay 2.90 mills in property tax to their municipal government, in addition to 20.00 mills they pay to the Clarke County School District and 13.20 mills they pay to the Unified Government of Athens-Clarke County. So, what happens, now?

Also according to the Banner-Herald, the deal between the CCSD and Winterville goes even further:

The agreement also would allow the Northeast Georgia Regional Education Service Agency (RESA), which is next door to the old buildings, to buy an adjoining piece of property - also for $1 - to expand its existing office space off Winter Street.

I looked up the two parcels in question, by my reckoning they are parcels 283A4 B001 and 283A4 C001, valued by the Clarke County Tax Assessor at $1,021,500 and $1,302,750, respectively. Obviously, the CCSD has no use for either property, but do the taxpayers really need to sacrifice almost a quarter of a million dollars in real estate for a couple of bucks? Would not a better option be to sell this land on the open market, thereby returning it to the property tax rolls?

Though I live in the Winterville area, my house is a few hundred yards (at most) outside of the city limits, so whatever tax implications this has will not affect me directly – though the possibility of indirect effects strike me as a distinct possibility.

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Continuing Saga Of Fire Station No. 6

This article appeared in the Banner-Herald a couple of Fridays back about the still uncertain future of Fire Station No. 6. The roof of the station was damaged by the snowstorm of 01 March and it has been out of commission since then, with its personnel and equipment having been reassigned to other stations. The Unified Government has been offered the sum of $700,000 by its insurance company to repair the damage but, instead of proceeding with the needed repairs so as to get the station up and running as soon as possible, it is deferring in hopes of securing an “economic stimulus grant” from the Obama Administration to supplement the insurance settlement and build an entirely new “suburban” style station with a price tag in the millions of dollars.

The Unified Government has the responsibility of local fire protection, but seems reluctant to provide such protection unless, of course, someone else picks up the tab. And if past experience is any guide, a new Fire Station No. 6 will be a much more elaborate and expensive proposition than is really necessary. Rather than wait the three more months required to – hopefully – secure stimulus money (not to mention the lengthy period required to construct any new station), I say make the needed repairs to the existing structure and get it back on line as soon as possible.

Fire Station No. 6 has already been closed for more than three months and the process of securing grant money will take another three months. Even the quicker option of repairing the roof would take a while; completely rebuilding the station could take years. For how long must Fire Station No. 6 be inoperative until its absence affects the insurance ratings for the homes, businesses, and industries in that part of the county? Has anyone in the Unified Government considered this?

Insofar as Mr. Lowry’s claim that no one has complained is concerned, I seriously doubt that most of the folks in District 1 realize that the station has been vacant for months. The station is not on a residential street and, unless they drive by and notice its closure, how are they to know? It is not like the Unified Government ever issued any kind of public statement noting that the station would be closed indefinitely. Besides which, I complained about the station’s closing in March, April, and May. I know that some members of the Unified Government read this blog, as do some of the folks at the Clarke County School District, Flagpole, as well as the editors and reporters at the Banner-Herald (where else do you think they get their figures on education spending?).

Doesn’t this prove that the current practice of throwing bailout and stimulus dollars at this or that is, in fact, nothing more than financial pandering. Constructing a new fire station will certainly employ some folks – for a short while, that is – but will not constitute anything remotely resembling long term economic growth. It is simply the federal government spending more money that it (meaning we) does not have on something the will not result in meaningful stimulus of the economy – even if some of the locals desire it.

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Area High School Graduation Test Results

Today’s Banner-Herald has a story about how area high school juniors did on their first crack at the Georgia High School Graduation Test. Much to my dismay (believe it or not), the results for the Clarke County School District were entirely predictable. For the particulars, see Ryan Blackburn’s article and its accompanying chart.

So, let’s run the numbers. Of the eight area school systems mentioned in the article, Clarke County scored the lowest, not to mention below the state average, in all four categories.

Concerning the math portion of the test, 89% of the CCSD’s students passed. Barrow and Oglethorpe Counties tallied the next lowest percentage at 93%. Jefferson City and Oconee County led the way with 97%. The state average was 94%.

In language arts, 84% of the CCSD juniors passed. The next lowest percentage was shared by Madison and Oglethorpe Counties at 87%. The highest percentage went to Oconee Countyat 95%. The state average was 90%.

Regarding science, Clarke County came in at 82%. Madison and Oglethorpe Counties had the next lowest percentages at 84%. Oconee County again scored the highest at 94%. The state average was 88%.

Finally, 79% of the CCSD’s juniors passed the social studies portion of the test. Madison County was next lowest at 83%. Commerce City schools scored the best at 95%. The state average was 87%.

Next, consider the per pupil spending by these various school systems for FY 2008:

Barrow County (12,194 students) $7968.16
Clarke County (11,834 students) $11,180.05
Commerce City (1504 students) $8692.96
Jackson County (6852 students) $10,279.22
Jefferson City (2472 students) $7738.37
Madison County (4711 students) $8942.75
Oconee County (6471 students) $8542.34
Oglethorpe County (2438 students) $8756.68
State Average $8967.83

Once again, the obvious conclusion to be drawn is that the strategy of raising student achievement through increased expenditures is one that is easily debunked. I realize that I harp on this point, but the lack of funds argument is one of the favorites routinely trotted out to excuse the CCSD’s academic shortcomings.

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Impertinent Observations (D.C. edition)

Is it just me, or are there others concerned about the proliferation of “czars" and "task forces” for this or that under the Obama administration? At least Cabinet officials have to be confirmed by the Senate, even if such approval is perfunctory; these so-called czars and task forces have been installed simply by executive fiat and given vast regulatory and administrative powers without even a hint of legal sanction or public accountability. No good will come of this.

Remember those tens of billions of dollars the Obama administration (and, in fairness, the Bush administration before it) threw at Chrysler and General Motors? After months of painting the legitimate bondholders as greedy roadblocks to recovery, while divvying up the companies to Obama’s union supporters, both automakers are headed toward bankruptcy of one sort or another. Both should have declared “real” bankruptcy months ago and let the courts settle their affairs according to the law. Instead, a staggering number of taxpayer dollars have gone down the bailout hole – never to be seen again. So the same guys who destroyed the home mortgage industry are now doing the same thing to the car makers. No good will come of this, either.

Advocates of more and higher taxes should take note of this. It seems that as taxes increase, the evil rich are, predictably, leaving Maryland in droves and thereby reducing tax revenue even as rates go up. As discussed in earlier posts, a similar thing happened here in our fair burg: after lecturing folks incessantly to save water, the Unified Government raised the rates so as to make up for the lost revenue when the populace did precisely as asked. Higher tax rates and utility fees affect behavior – but you would never know it by listening to those who propose the increases, so look for the same pattern to repeat itself at the federal, state, and local levels.

I fear that the White House is pushing Israel into a corner vis-à-vis Iran. Thus far, the Obama administration’s response to a series of missile launches, nuclear tests, and spinning centrifuges on the part of the Axis of Evil has been . . . nothing meaningful whatsoever (Joe Biden, call your office). As the Norks refine their nuclear and missile technology, the foremost importers of which have been Syria and Iran, Israel’s position becomes increasingly untenable. Iran, which funds and supports proxy wars against Israel via Hezbollah and Hamas, is developing and/or buying nuclear and ballistic technology as fast as it can, with the stated goal of obliterating Israel, a.k.a the “little Satan.” Because the western response in general and the American response in particular have been timid in the extreme (and again, this approach did not start with Obama), the Netanyahu government may have to take matters into its own hands. Of course, it would be ritually condemned for doing so, even if the alternative was national suicide – but it is always the fault of the Jews, isn’t it?

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Impertinent Observations (tax edition)

As I drove over to have lunch wife my wife yesterday, I listened to The Herd on ESPN Radio. "And just what does that have to do with taxes?" you sensibly ask. The answer is that host Colin Cowherd was discussing the influence local and state taxes have on the willingness of professional athletes to sign with certain franchises. Cowherd, a sports commentator, displayed a far more perceptive grasp of the implications of tax policy than do most politicians.

The results are in on those California budget (for the most part meaning tax increase) referenda. Of the six measures on the ballot, five were defeated by almost two-to-one margins (1A through 1E, see statewide and county level results here). Pointedly, the only one that passed (1F), by an almost three-to-one margin, prohibits pay increases for elected officials during years in which the state is running a deficit (see the Voter Information Guide to the referenda here).

Get used to stories like these. As the predictable outcome of years of profligate spending comes home to roost, governments at the local, state, and federal levels will be hunting for revenue wherever they can find (or extort) it. But, of course, what they probably will not do is fundamentally rethink their spending practices – which is why the voters of the Golden State wisely voted down a package of short-term fixes and why the current blizzard of federal stimulus and bailouts will not work.

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General Services District Lament (again)

Apparently prompted by complaints from residents in the Urban Services District, meaning the former City of Athens, the Unified Government of Athens-Clarke County recently came out with a statement about how the folks over at Solid Waste have been playing catch-up since the snow storm back at the beginning of March (scroll down to the second item). As a result, the local media dutifully reported the difficulties caused by the storm to the county’s leaf & limb pickup schedule (see here, here, and here [scroll down to the next to last item]), which has been so severe as to prompt Solid Waste to augment its efforts by hiring private contractors.

To which my response is – all together now – “What leaf and limb pick-up?”

As I noted last year, contrary to what the folks downs at City Hall would have you believe, that service is not available to all residents of the county. To review the particulars of that episode, see here and here.

And while I am at it. another consequence of the storm was damage to the engine bay roof at Fire Station No. 6. We are now some eleven weeks removed from the snowfall and there are still no signs of life whatsoever at the station located at the intersection of Athena and Olympic. See here and here for my previous gripes about that. The Unified Government has insurance coverage for damage to its buildings, right? So what is the holdup in repairing the roof?

Had similar damage occurred at, say Fire Station No. 3 (a.k.a. the Five Points Taj Mahal), I seriously doubt that almost three months after the fact repairs would not even be underway. Once again, it appears that the folks who live in the formerly unincorporated area of the county are getting the short end of the stick.

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Concerning Sales Tax Rates

According to the Georgia Department of Revenue’s County Rate Chart, all but a handful of the state’s 159 counties charge the full 7% sales tax allowed by law. This percentage includes the 4% allocated to the State of Georgia and, for the most part, additional 1% Local Option (LOST), Special Purpose (SPLOST), and Educational (ELOST) taxes charged by the various counties (there are a few different scenarios hither and yon, not to mention the City of Atlanta’s additional 1% tax, but the “LSE” designation is pretty constant across the board).

Locally, according to the DOR’s Historical Rate Chart, we here in Clarke County have been paying LOST continuously since January 1978, SPLOST almost continuously since October 1985 (with the exceptions of October 1986 through March 1988 and April 1992 through March 1995), and ELOST continuously since July 1997 (see page 5 of the PDF).

Though we can do nothing directly about the state’s 4%, as I see it there are several significant problems with the continued reliance of the Unified Government of Athens-Clarke County and the Clarke County School District on the various optional sales taxes.

The first is that, even if capital projects themselves are constructed using only SPLOST or ELOST funds, once built they doubtlessly will require ongoing personnel, maintenance, and operational expenses, all of which come out of the general budget and not out of optional sales taxes. The point is that these capital projects will have an impact on the budget from the point of construction onward, regardless of the nature of the funding for the construction itself.

Also, consider that revenue bonds are routinely issued in addition to the optional sales taxes. For example, the Unified Government issued $200 million in bonds just last year and the CCSD issued $50 million just the year before that. The idea that optional sales taxes will serve to reduce bonded indebtedness is pure fiction (and yes, I know that the CCSD bonds are supposed to be paid off with sales tax, but if the amount collected is insufficient to do so, the balance ostensibly will be applied to property tax - but that is another matter about which I have commented before).

Then there is the problem of taking property off of the tax digest. Clarke County is the smallest in the state by area, vast swaths of which are not on the tax roll by virtue of being own by the Unified Government, the Clarke County School District, the Board of Regents, the State of Georgia, and even the imperial federal government of the United States. To me, increasing the ratio further by purchasing even more land with optional sales tax dollars is an obviously self-defeating proposition; as more property becomes tax-exempt because it is owned by government, more revenue must be derived from the taxable property that remains just to keep the budgets balanced – never mind the revenue needed to increase spending.

Finally, though they are pitched as “temporary,” the reality is that optional sales taxes never go away. On the one hand, government cries paucity at the very thought of discontinuing such taxes. On the other hand, it claims that such levies will keep property tax low (which never seems to work out, does out?). Besides which, the SOP is to start the planning for a continuation of the optional sales tax even before the current one is up and running, much less completed. In my view the referendum process is structured to favor continuation of such taxes. The strategy thus far has been to promise various narrow interest groups that their per projects will be built, thereby securing the support of them all for passage of the tax referendum. And then there has been the practice of holding (or at least trying to hold) such referenda on dates guaranteed to result in a low turnout so as to magnify the influence of those interest groups (though the General Assembly has tightened this one up a bit).

The root of the problem, though, is that the appetite for money never lets up. At City Hall, the Unified Government is constantly pushing for more revenue in the forms of a new regional (or statewide, as the case may be) 1% transportation sales tax and an increase in the local hotel/motel tax from 7% to 8%. Over on Mitchell Bridge Road, the CCSD whines incessantly about “austerity cuts,” even as it takes in tens of millions of dollars from the state year after year. And so it goes.

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