Manatee County school officials this week agreed to keep Duette Elementary open for at least one more year. “As the last one-room school house in the state of Florida, Duette Elementary has always held a special place in the heart of our school district and we are glad it will be in the open next year,” said Margi Nannery, a spokeswoman for the school district.

This comes as school districts across Florida are facing massive budget cuts from a sales tax shortfall. Manatee County schools are looking to shave $21 million off next year’s operating budget, and layoffs and pay cuts loom.

Times in Florida are tough. Florida families are being squeezed, either directly or indirectly, by skyrocketing gas prices, rising health care costs, the continued housing crisis and, of course, the subprime mortgage disaster. According to Congresswoman Karen L. Thurman, Chair, Florida Democratic Party “The Republican’s reckless policy of raising property taxes on middle class families to pay for special interest tax loopholes has been devastating. You won’t ever hear them admit to raising taxes, but its true. They’ve increased the local effort -local property taxes-time and again.

What do the Republicans want? I’ll tell you: The Republicans want to reduce per student spending in K-12 education for the first time in almost 40 years. They want to eliminate Everglades clean-up efforts. Though child abuse Though child abuse rises as the economy dives, they’re going after more than 70 child-protection jobs. The Republicans also want to gut the highway patrol and reduce public safety. They want to lay off almost 2,000 corrections officers, despite prisons being stretched to the limit already. They want to cut a third of the states probation officers-the law enforcement specialists whose job it is to keep convicted sexual predators away from your children.”

And, she goes on to enumerate several other provisions that are unnecessary because Florida has a rainy day fund, and there are plenty of corporate tax loopholes that can be closed. Democrats proposed an alternative budget that was rejected.

Sources:

Jessica Klipa, Bradenton Herald, April 16, 2008, p.1C

Sylvia Lim, Bradenton Herald, April 16, 2008, p. 8C

Congresswoman Karen L. Thurman, Chair, Florida Democratic Party, April 16, 2008, pperry@fladems.com