MPS Budget Concerns

The Montgomery County Board of Education met Tuesday night for one of two budget hearings.

There were a lot of concerns brought up about where the money was going and how it was being used.
Almost 3 million dollars are allocated for magnet schools, which some people don’t think is fair to other schools.

“Seems like it’s always magnet schools getting a lot of attention. New building, new books, new furniture and everything. You got schools that have been around for a long time that need repair. I don’t know if you have ever been around to some of the schools. But a lot of them got mold and different things that need to be repaired,” said teacher Pamela West.

Also, county commissioner Isaiah Sankey says he has concerns about the one cent sale tax that was implemented in 2004 for the school system.

“I’m concerned over 425 million dollars over a nearly 14 year period. And the state has still chosen to take over and so I’m concerned about the accountability for those funds. I’m not suggesting that anybody has misappropriated anything. But it would be nice if the school board would give us some feed back on how that money is being spent,” said Sankey.

There will be another budget hearing this Thursday at noon in the Central Office Auditorium at 307 South Decatur Street.