Editor, The Herald:

Real Estate Tax Rates:

Cumberland $0.68/$100 of assessed value

Amelia $0.60/$100

Appomattox $0.575/$100

Buckingham $0.44/$100

Charlotte $0.42/$100

Prince Edward $0.42/$100 of assessed value

To own land and property is a blessing and a privilege which carries the obligation to pay real estate and property taxes that fund the county's services, the largest being our public schools. Landowners and property-owners are the taxpayers, BUT they are not the only voices the Supervisors should listen to and hear. Not all residents of Prince Edward County can afford land or other valuable property. Many people rent their homes, or live in extended family households. Many people share vehicles or use older, less valuable cars and equipment. The percentage of our residents who are living below the poverty line is high. However, all residents of Prince Edward County have a civil right to a good education. Even those who are property-less, unemployed, and who have otherwise fallen on hard times have the guaranteed civil right to an education in schools that are properly funded.

Funding education is not charity. It is a responsibility that benefits all in society. The popular saying, “a hand up, not a hand out,” first appeared in the 1960s when poverty and injustice in our country were confronted head on. Here in Prince Edward County we know about both of those conditions firsthand. Education at the local level must remain strong here in Prince Edward County.

The State has radically reduced funding for education, placing a larger burden of school funding onto the County. It is unfair. But, the buck stops here, and we must deal with the unfairness. Our school budgets in the past have been described as “bare-boned.” The term “level funding” is a harmless-sounding concept. Such “level funding” is actually a decrease in real dollars that cuts into the bare bones by eliminating, not merely scaling back, many positions and programs.

The proposed cuts are the largest and deepest that I have experienced in my 30 years in Prince Edward County. Tier 1 cuts (as outlined in the March 28 Farmville Herald) include 12 jobs of real people sitting in real chairs, dedicated teachers and loyal staff who do not want to leave! Proposed Tier 2 cuts (see the same issue of the Herald) include 7 more jobs lost. Academic programs that suffer include foreign languages, special education, early childhood, and arts, among others.

Supervisors have already publicly recognized the critical need for Cost of Living Adjustments for County employees. I applaud that decision. The obvious solution to this crisis, a tax increase, must be put on the table. Please recognize the vital needs of our schools. Find the revenues to properly fund them!

Teri Duke Kidd

Farmville