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than 50% of their request. These cuts include a lot of the things they were trying to put in to <br />meet the Educational Excellence Report. The capon the general fund percentage used for <br />education and the CHCCS district tax work against OCS to fund the budget. Regarding the <br />countywide supplemental tax, he is offended by some of the comments made about holding a <br />school system hostage. He said that they are not talking about doing away with the CHCCS <br />district tax. He said that CHCCS could decide to zero out the countywide supplemental tax <br />because they have the district tax to fall back on. He said that the easy solution is what is <br />before them. They do not need a district tax or a countywide supplemental tax. <br />Liz Brown is a member of the OCS Board and said that she agrees with Dennis Whitling. <br />She said that year after year they ask for full funding and are told no because it would over fund <br />CHCCS. This makes her think that the district tax in CHCCS does affect the funding in OCS. <br />The Ad Val Orem tax is the fairest thing for OCS. The mill workers and farmers in the rural <br />areas deserve the exact same educational opportunities as the professor's children in Chapel <br />Hill. The school board voted unanimously that both options are bad and they also voted <br />unanimously on a school budget this year that was 92.9% funded. <br />AI Hartkopf is a member of the OCS Board and he said that Commissioner Halkiotis <br />mentioned sidewalks and other issues, and he would like to talk to him about this later. He <br />thanked the County Commissioners for the money that has been given to the OCS. He said <br />that if they wanted a district tax, the people that brought them the merger issue would have <br />brought it forward at that time. It is time for the Board of County Commissioners to vote tonight <br />to tell the schools that they must make better use of the money. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis said that it is important for people to be allowed to express their <br />opinions, and to express their opinions on this issue at the ballot box is the best way to do this. <br />He said that if it weren't for progressive voters in this county, in both the northern, central and <br />southern parts of the county, then there are a number of schools in the county that would have <br />never been built. And we need to be cognizant of this. It is an opportunity for people to stand up <br />and be counted. School Board politics are something the School Boards can "fight" about. He <br />said that he has been dismayed about some of the news he has read and some of the <br />comments he has heard and he gets really dismayed when people start attacking each other, <br />especially one school board attacking another school board. He said it almost has prompted <br />him to stand up publicly and say, Commissioner Carey, do you want to take a vote on school <br />merger, then he would vote with him and that would be two votes for merger and if you get <br />another, then he {Commissioner Carey} would have his plan. <br />A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Foushee to call a <br />special referendum for an Orange County administrative school district tax to be put on the <br />ballot in November, with the appropriate language that the County Attorney and County <br />Manager have put together as part of their agenda packet this evening. <br />Chair Carey said that he does not support these taxes, either an OCS district tax or the <br />countywide supplemental tax, and he does not plan to support these tonight. He said that the <br />Board needs to approach school funding as one system. Chair Carey said that the most <br />significant reason why he does not support either of these taxes is because neither one of the <br />taxes puts the county in the best position in the long run to save money or at least get control of <br />the costs of the operations of our two schools systems. And, neither tax will help the county <br />save money on capital expenses in the long run. <br />Commissioner Gordon said that she thought it was very important to get more money to the <br />OCS. She said that she has looked back over the past 5 years and found that it has been <br />approximately $2 million a year that is the difference between what OCS requested and what <br />