Intergovernmental cooperation stretches tax dollars

by
Thomas G. Scullen, Ed.D.

"...intergovernmental cooperation can control overall tax expenditures while continuing to provide the services that residents demand. It can, and should, be the priority project of every taxing body."

The Taxpayers Federation of Illinois has identified DuPage County as the hardest hit area in Illinois for property tax obligations. According to Douglas L. Whitley, president of the Taxpayers Federation, "The Taxpayers Federation has been acutely aware of the high cost of residing in DuPage County since we began our annual county tax rankings in 1986. In those four years DuPage has yet to surrender the number one position for the highest per-capita residential tax burden in the state."

Next spring, Indian Prairie Schools in Naperville will be placing yet another referendum for new schools on the ballot. Since the Federation first published its rankings, Indian Prairie has passed two bond referenda and an education fund increase.

Our ever-increasing assessed valuation does little to cover the costs of a school population that has doubled in the past five years, requiring the construction of six new schools and an addition to the high school. We must depend on the already over-burdened local taxpayer for our survival, and yet we acknowledge the onset of a taxpayer revolt. Intergovernmental cooperation is a critical element in the process of stretching tax dollars while maintaining and improving the quality of life for all residents. With the inevitable upward spiral of tax levies and statewide challenge of school funding, our ability to meet the high expectations of our residents will require "intergovernmental teamwork."

Indian Prairie is one of the fastest-growing school systems in the state, and the impact of that rapid growth is reflected by the high tax rates. Residents demand a high quality of service for those tax dollars. Quality schools, libraries, parks, park programs, and other services are expected, although it has become increasingly expensive to provide these services as the area continues to grow.

Indian Prairie covers 46 square miles, and straddles the border of both Naperville and Aurora, DuPage and Will counties, and two park districts, library systems and other services. A large portion of our district lies in the high-tech corridor, and much of the open land is in one of the hottest real estate areas in northern Illinois. The increase in assessed valuation, while significant, cannot meet the demands of this burgeoning population. It has become increasingly difficult to maintain the quality of service while continually expanding the quality. From an original park/ school district agreement more than 10 years ago, we've expanded and refined the process so that is has become a priority in Indian Prairie not only to accept, but also to actively seek out cooperative ventures with other governmental agencies.

At lease once a year, we hold a dinner meeting with the neighboring school district, park and library board and administrators, and various city officials. These meetings are not formal, and the agenda usually consists of table talk, with a short review by a representative from each group of the projects and developments recently completed as well as goals for the future. The reviews give a more complete picture of the needs of the area, but the table talk is the real wealth of information. In this relaxed atmosphere, a park district board member might note the need for park programs in the newly populated southern portion of the city, and

a school board member might state that a new school is slated for the very area the park district is trying to serve. As conversation continues, cooperative ideas come naturally, and everyone can contribute to making these ideas a reality.

Schools, especially elementary schools, need facilities from early morning to perhaps 3:30 to 4 in the afternoon, five days a week. Even with the occasional choral program, book fair or school carnival, the buildings are not usually used to any extent during the evenings or weekends, or during holiday and summer vacation breaks. These are, conversely, the very times that park districts need facilities to offer their programs. By combining school and park district programs in one facility, only one piece of property is taken off the tax rolls, only one building is built and utilized in a most efficient manner, and services are provided within walking distance to many residents. After-school sports activities normally provided by the schools can be supplemented by the park district programs, and in come cases, replaced. Gymnastics is a costly program that many schools hesitate to offer, but park districts can provide equipment and staff as a part of their recreational offerings, and, without the expense of a building, can put their funding into the programs. We have several agreements with both park districts in our area. With one district, we provide the space in our new schools located in their city in return for their providing landscape and all outdoor maintenance beyond 5 feet from the school building. The parks have also provided the more than $40,000 worth of playground equipment at the schools.

In the other district, park programs receive priority in the use of the new schools during non-school hours, while they have paid for an increase to the size of the school gym, provided playground equipment at all the schools in their city, and pay for the increased utility and maintenance costs.

It is important to provide legal agreements that clearly delineate who pays for what and what responsibilities are expected from both parties. The agreement requires a great deal of initial time and effort, and the school principal is basically responsible for scheduling school programs at the beginning of the school year.

The high school schedule is more difficult to work around because so often sports practice and other activities tie up the building; but an innovative idea allowed both the high school and the Fox Valley Park District to profit from cooperation. Waubonsie Valley High School needed to replace badly deteriorated tennis courts. A referendum for increasing the size of the school included funding for renovating fields and replacing the tennis courts. The park district had received many complaints about the lack of adult recreational facilities in the Fox Valley area, with tennis as the most requested activity. When the most logical site for locating a park district tennis facility turned out to be the area in or around the high school, administrators from both the schools and the parks met to see if yet another cooperative agreement could be achieved. The result is a 12-court, lighted tennis facility on school district property, maintained by the park district and enjoyed by residents and the tennis teams alike. The facility is

twice the size proposed by the high school, and is located in an area where land costs might have prohibited the park district from building a facility of this quality. Most of the money earmarked for the new tennis courts can now be applied to other needed renovations at the high school.

The McCarty Elementary School Library is also the Fox Valley branch of the Aurora Public Library, filling another need in this high-growth area. The only library in Aurora was located many miles from the Fox Valley villages area at the far eastern edge of the city. As the population grew, the library board was faced with the problem of providing a facility in this area to meet the needs of its residents. The resulting school/library agreement came about due to a conversation at one of the intergovernmental dinners. While a separate library facility is currently being discussed, the immediate needs of the residents are being met in a way that is beneficial to all parties.

The dinners spur other agreements. An agreement with a neighboring school district to accept tuition students for a home-building course; a telecommunications program based at a local community college in cooperation with six area high schools that allows schools to send or receive both high school and college credit courses via closed circuit television.

An open line of communication also allows the business community to participate in the schools through the 3-year-old Indian Prairie Educational Foundation, which provides funding and resources for programs such as a science lecture series, a nature conservancy/living classroom at a middle school, artists-in-residence, student/ teacher recognition dinners, teacher minigrants and other programs that greatly enhance the quality of our educational offerings.

Working cooperatively with other agencies can sometimes be frustrating and is always time-consuming, but taxpayers have a right to expect the most for their money. It requires a conscious effort to explore all possible joint agreements; but increased communication with city officials in an atmosphere of "how can we do this program more efficiently?" is a definite advantage in the battle to provide quality education for your students.

The advantages are many. Less duplication of services, more offerings to the community as a whole, fewer parcels of land off the tax rolls, and a better return on the tax dollar are some of the advantages. Instead of taxing bodies clashing over fiscal responsibilities for things such as crossing guards, electrical inspections, road improvements and impact fees, intergovernmental cooperation can control overall tax expenditures while continuing to provide the services that residents demand. It can, and should, be the priority project of every taxing body.

About the Author
Dr. Thomas G. Scullen is Superintendent of the Indian Prairie Community Unit School District 204.