Letters: Schools a 'bologna' sliced thin
Classrooms across Long Island were empty on Thursday. Check our listings of delayed openings, closures and cancellations to see what's in store for Friday. Credit: Daniel Brennan
Your editorial "Vote to end local stagnation" [Nov. 1] makes excellent points about the future of Long Island. But the fact remains that a key driver of residents' plans and decisions are local taxes -- particularly, the abnormally high fraction of our property taxes for schools.
Until local taxpayers wake up and realize that 124 separately funded school districts is a bologna that's sliced too thin, we will continue to face a significant financial burden that affects our living conditions. I remind you of the article you published several years ago comparing Long Island governance to that of the Virginia suburbs outside Washington. ["LI can learn from other booming communities," Opinion, Sept. 10, 2009].
I lived in suburban Maryland for 38 years before coming to Long Island in 2006. Lean, cost-effective governance was the rule in that area, including a single countywide school district. Long Island should consolidate its school districts -- at most one school district per town.
Paul Jacobs, Huntington
