………… He will definitely win the “Widemouth Wyeth” award for pure stupidity. For those unfamiliar with this award, it is named after one of the most pompous ignoramuses that ever graced public office in St. Croix County- Priscilla Wyeth.

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Here’s another look at a public “servant” in the Hudson School District-

Nancy Sweet

2007-08 Salary – $112,389
Fringe Benefits – $29,800
Total Pay $142,189

Total amount needed to pay for Nancys retirement and post-retirement healthcare – $1,973,446 (5% rate of return, $78,672 per year pension and $20,000 health insurance coverage)

We hear it all the time. The government employees like to refer to themselves as “public servants”. It sounds really nice. How can anyone not like a public “servant”. Over the next few weeks we’re going to take a close look at some of those “servants”. The reader can make up their own mind as to who is being “serviced”, as it were. The first individual that we will look at this evening is the Superintendent of the Hudson schools:

Mary Bowen-Eggebratten

2007-08 Salary – $126,455
Fringe Benefits – $42,690
Total Pay $169,145

Total amount needed to pay for Mary’s retirement and post-retirement healthcare – $2,170,370 (5% rate of return, $88,519 per year pension and $20,000 health insurance coverage)

How in the world am I going to be able to send my kids to a good private school if I have to take a pay freeze!

Anonymous Hudson Government School Teacher

Dear Hudson School District Employees,

In school forums that we had earlier this year, the Directors and I talked about the budget situation we are experiencing for the 2009-10 school year and called it, The Perfect Storm. There are a number of variables in determining our budget. Most of them will not be known until later (such as the actual amount of state aid/student, how many students we will have in the fall, and what our total property valuation will be). The Finance Committee of the Board of Education and administration have been studying the situation for some time and feel it is now necessary to take action because of the economic conditions that face our community. Since the Districts budget affects all of us and our work. I wanted to make sure that you had the following information.

This past year the St. Croix Business Park closed as a Tax Incremental Financing District (TIF) and $190,000,000 of property value was added to our tax base. As a result, the District received a one time payment of about $1,800,000. We used approximately $900,000 of that payment in the 2008-09 budget to lessen the impact of opening River Crest. We plan to use the other half to lessen the impact of the 2009-10 budget. Usually, more property on the tax rolls is an advantage; but for Hudson, it becomes a double edged sword. Because it pushed HSD further than we already are above the states average property value per student, the state views Hudson as property rich and able to pay for public education at a higher rate. That results in an estimated loss of state aid for Hudson next year of $1,500,000 to $1,800,000. In addition to this decrease to Hudson, the Districts overall state aid is yet to be determined and presumed to be less than expected in the past due to the states current budget deficit.

In preparation for a loss of District revenue, the administration has already reduced the initial preliminary budget by approximately $1,000,000. Even with these budget reductions and adjustments, the property tax mill rate is expected to increase because of the loss of state aid. Further cuts, reductions, and adjustments are necessary to keep any mill rate increase at a reasonable level, particularly when our community is experiencing the worst economic crisis in recent history.

The Board will be meeting on Tuesday, April 21st to discuss budget cuts and reductions. The Board will discuss staff reductions and layoffs and may take action on preliminary lay-offs. Neither the Board nor administration want to make these reductions, but we are concerned about Hudson taxpayers and their ability to pay at this time with the level of job losses, wage reductions, business and personal bankruptcies, business/industry closures, and home foreclosures that are occurring. Some of you are experiencing one or more of these conditions personally.

Please know that we are deeply concerned about our employees and want to make the level of reductions or lay-offs as minimal as possible. It is with heavy hearts that we move forward considering action that may affect some of you.

The Board values your work and will seek to preserve, as much as possible, progress in the HSD System of Learning to which each of you has contributed; HSD 2025; and operations that support these initiatives, overall excellence, and safety/security.

The special Board meeting is on Tuesday at 7:30 pm in the River Crest multi-purpose room. Our policies and procedures do not allow public comment during a special meeting, but we expect that there will be an opportunity at a future meeting for public comment from staff and community members. Here is a link to the Board meeting agenda. You are welcome to attend the meeting to observe. We plan to send an update late in the day on Wednesday.

Thank you for understanding the situation that we face.

Mary

I managed to convince these teachers to educate the students of our community in exchange for the money!

Mark Kaisersatt, Hudson school board member and head negotiator in labor talks with the local teachers’ union

The hardworking taxpayers of Hudson can rest comfortably at night knowing the Mark is such a hardnosed negotiator! Imagine being able to get the teachers to show up for work after squandering millions during the last contract talks. Mark gave up 6% a year for 4 years. Good thing he’s not a pushover…..

….. A HUGE pile of horse manure!

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While the rest of the industrialized nations are taking us to the cleaners in education, we here in Hudson are providing education in 3D-ummy-

Diversity Days
Destination Indoctrination
Drunk Driving Exhibition

So as students in other countries will be learning about science and math tomorrow, our students here in Hudson will spend an ENTIRE DAY watching a drunk driving exhibition. The students will not be learning important subject matter and the teachers will be collecting a check for doing nothing. Who’s kidding who?