By DefeatZayasCortezPowers PAC
(We managed to acquire an original copy of the DefeatZayasCortezPowers PAC response to the one-sided article written by Gary Long on the front page of Monday's Brownsville Herald. A sanitized version appeared in the daily's editorial section today. Not surprisingly, no mention is made of Long's gullibility in swallowing Tony Fuller's "misrepresentations" in his article).
To: The children, parents, teachers, and BISD staff and citizens of Brownsville
We welcome the opportunity to respond to statements presented as facts in a Monday article featured prominently on the front page of the Brownsville Herald.
While we have admired the fair and balanced manner in which education writer Gary Long has written in the past, we feel that he was bamboozled like the rest of the residents of Brownsville on this one.
Don’t fret Gary. When a bean counter starts to spout numbers and hide behind accounting mumbo-jumbo, anyone can get confused.
Unfortunately, this is only one of many issues facing BISD.
Of utmost importance is the issue of children with Special Needs in our district. There is ample documentation of irresponsible misdiagnoses, failure to provide services needed, and just plain gross violations of the dignity and decency of this most vulnerable group.
BISD reports indicate that more than 400 children still have not been properly diagnosed. That is disturbing to us and it should be disturbing to you. That led to the creation of the PAC and that is how Carlos Quintanilla and Accion America got involved.
We invited him to come help us organize to address this problem after the majority on the board – our own Brownsville people – chose to ignore the warnings and to sweep the problem under the rug instead.
On fiscal accountability, you must put blame on where blame is due and that falls: squarely on Superintendent Brett Springston and his Chief Financial Officer, Tony Fuller.
Here are the facts. Let’s call it Math 101.
If you have revenues of $305,333,822 and you spend $373,518,977, you have a budget deficit of $68,185,155. It’s that simple. To her credit, trustee Catalina Presas-Garcia – who shares our deep concerns about the fiscal integrity of our district – voted not to adopt the “deficit” budget.
Why? In 2008, BISD had a fund balance of $176 million. We now have a fund balance of $74 million.
Now, for those that might not know what fund balance is, this is the amount of money that BISD puts aside for a “Rainy Day.” So now you begin to understand that when the storm hits BISD, it might not have enough in fund balance to take care of business. It is only logical to realize that unless there is another revenue source, our taxes will go up.
Math 202: If you have a Certificate of Deposit (Fund Balance) of $10,000 and you borrow $7,000 to pay your household bills, you are living beyond your means and either you continue your reckless spending or start developing strategies to stave off bankruptcy.
If we stand by and allow the majority on this board to continue going to the reserve fund well as they have for the past three years, how long do you think we can continue before it runs dry and we have to increase taxes to cover the unsustainable spending at BISD? In our example, all we will have is $3,000. In our household economy, we are using our nickel. When BISD does it, it is on the nickel of all of us, the taxpayers.
Fuller goes on to say the figures cited as “actual deficits” seem to be the amounts BISD designated for use from fund balances in each year’s budget. He adds it is inaccurate to characterize the figures as deficits because BISD must operate under a balanced budget.
Yet, he can’t deny that unless the board had not borrowed that $68 million, it would not have had a balanced budget.
Our children's future is everyone’s business. We must not allow BISD to become someone’s piggy bank. You must ask questions and be diligent, so that you get the right answers.
These are not figures that were put on by the PAC. These are figures released and signed in a public document (June 30, 2010) by both gentlemen named above and adopted by a majority on the board.
Fuller boasted to the Brownsville Herald that “it all begins with government fund accounting and how you present financial statements.” He then goes on to say: In the first year, BISD received the whole $135 million of voter-approved bond monies, which when added to the districts existing fund balance resulted in a total fund balance for capital projects of $141,114,577.
A simple question would have been: “Mr. Fuller is it legal to co-mingle voter-approved bond revenue with the district’s existing fund?”
Unfortunately, it wasn’t asked.
It is our responsibility to speak out. The days of fear and intimidation are over.
If you share our concerns for the education of our children and the fiscal integrity of our district and believe all of our students are special and have unlimited possibilities to achieve great things then you are one of us. The problems facing Latino Children not just in Brownsville, but all over the United States – high drop-out rates, truancy and systemic academic failure – cry for solutions. Your participation0n in this process is the beginning of that solution.
BISD Teachers and Staff, we appreciate you.
The facts are the facts. We have presented them as we have seen them. The PAC was created to give us the opportunity to make positive changes for the children of Brownsville. We have done our job. Now it’s your turn to go out and do yours. Vote Tuesday, November 2, 2010.
Friday, October 29, 2010
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rita
14 comments:
The posting is comparing Apples - Oranges and Limones. A budget is prepared based on what the needs, costs and receipts are expected to be.
It lists the categories and needs then in a special or "Fund" accounting system mostly used by governmental organizations. The expenditure accounts are "funded" or money is placed into an account for spending up to a certain amount.
The budget is just a guess as to how much can be spent and for what.
If you allocate and spend more money than is included for in a particular budget account, you are over budget; In most of these cases money is taken from another budget account, which becomes underfunded, to pay for it. A condition that is very frequent with government entities.
When you spend more than you received it is not necessarily a budget deficit; if it was planned and was included in the budget planning the money could have come from borrowing or other savings.
Further Math 202 has nothing to do with Fund accounting. Budgeting and fund accounting were most likely invented to make it difficult for regular folks to understand.
Well said, Fred. This is just more of Carlos Quintanilla's BS. Look @ the Document he is referencing. The 300 million dollar fiqures he uses are not bottom line totals. Just like he claimed there was a 92 million dollar deficit in the Capital Bond Fund (proven Wrong), the projected budget for the BISD is 507 million +. More misrepresentation pure and simple.
There are most likely not 400 students needing initial evaluation. The students must be evaluated every 3 years so at any one time there are many evaluation pending. These are in the order they are due. Each school has about one third of their special education population that need to reevaluated each year plus the new referrals. Another example of comparing apples to oranges as these students are being served even though they need a new evaulation.
A spade is a spade. Counting is easy, go to the store and spend more than what is in your wallet, put the balance on your credit card, bottom line you will have to pay that debt eventually.
Don't blame Quintanilla for the problems caused by Zayas and Cortez. He is right on.
A guess I don't think so, if you overspend you are in debt, whose chain do you think you are pulling a deficit is a deficit, as one good journalist once said you can put a monkey in a tuxedo, the monkey will still be a monkey.
Brownsville voters are not idiots no matter how you want to call it, deficit, shortfall or guess.
Fred drew now we know that you are aka Tony Fuller, now you are trying to bamboozle El RRUN RRUN. I think Montoya is smarter than Gary Long.
So if I spend more money than what I'm earning it's hunky-dory because I planned to borrow from my Mother-in law or Mr. Visa?
With all due respect, Fred, pero estas bien #$5@&8!##.
What else is new? BISD lies? No????? How dare you say that? I wish my check book would balance out just like Fuller balances out the one for BISD.
Unfortunately in government accounting a spade is not a spade. The accounting was created specifically because the process of spending money is separate from the acquiring of the money. The budget is created and authorized independently of the folks who need to spend the money ie School Board and usually before the money is collected which is usually less than they expect to have because some folks don't pay taxes and sales taxes may be less than expected. Bureaucrats still want to give constituents stuff to get reelected so they are optimistic. Then separate from that process the different accounts are funded as money becomes available. This leaves a lot of opportunity to fiddle with the details -its all in the details. I studied accounting but only used it in law enforcement; 32 years plus in the fed government. Nothing is what it seems on the surface!
Fuller, Zayas,Gary and Springston are liars. Cut through the chase and post the reports or docments submitted to TEA on line so everyone can see them. Prove these guys are lying.
Mr.Montoya you should put the deficit budget that was signed by Fuller. Put a final nail in the coffin of these liars. Once and for all.
Fred Drew, what a piece of spin, you don't even believe it. A deficit is a deficit, overdrawn in your back account means your checks will bounce unless you borrow the money to cover them. BISD will soon start bouncing 68 million dollars worth.
As Dr. Tony Zavaleta said years ago, "corruption is a part of the Mexican culture and we should just accept it". We continue to have to deal with this "cultural DNA" in the RGV. We don't just accept corruption, we demand it.
I was always taught not to live beyound my limits. If I did not have the money, I would remove it from my list of needs. If you can not afford to pay for it cash, you can not afford it, my Mom used to instill on us. But some of us try to live beyond our means and that is where we get in trouble. I can remember when BISD was cited for being top heavy and that was fixed for a while, but now we are back to the same and no one has come in to stop us. Top administrative salaries are being duplicated with an assistant to the assistant of the assistant. Just study each department and see the number of head-hunchos who are trying to out do the other by falling into the graces of the supt and/or the board. That is why we are working with a deficit. Remember that the pie must represent more for instruction than administration and I just don't know how the BISD is cooked.
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