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How to pay off the debt - School Board Meeting December 2011

December 11, 2011 

Good evening and thank you for allowing me to comment this evening. 

Three years ago four Geneva residents got together at Panera Bread and decided that we had to do something about our increasing property taxes. And thus For Accountable Controlled Tax Spending FACTS was born. What we said three years ago is even truer today – Our property taxes are out of control and will only increase over the next 8 years. 

The Geneva community is now 325.6 million dollars in debt, 1/3 of a billion dollars. This debt is only partially the school board & administrations fault; the voters bare the rest for either agreeing to increasing debt or not voting at all. On average, about 10% of the registered voters agreed to put us behind the eight-ball. 

Since this debt was a community decision, it only makes sense that the community decides how to pay off the monster. I have one request of the board this evening: Come up with three solutions for debt repayment and allow the community to decide which is the best option. The board can conduct four public forums like they did for the referendums and then either put the options on the March ballot as a referendum question or have electronic voting through the district website. It can and should be done. 

Quite frankly, you have lost the trust of many in the Geneva community and need to try and regain that through complete transparency from this moment forward. You serve the entire community not just the PTO’s, the GAF, the ALL SPORTS BOOSTERS, the theater & band parents, the GEARS parents, the FACTS group or the administration. You serve everyone.

Thank you and good luck! 

Bob McQuillan

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