School board members are elected to oversee the running of the school according to the amount of funds available in the budget. This is the authority that we the voters entrust to them. We have not given them the authority to set the amount of money in their budget. We voters retain that authority. In other words we supply X amount of dollars and have told them, “Run the school with this.” We never said, “If this is not enough money for you, go borrow some more,” even to meet requirements for a “free money” grant.

The School Board is claiming they must act immediately because the next election will be too late for this particular grant. We must remind them the last election was a resounding “NO” to more spending at this time. The School Board’s authority only concerns money we voters have approved. If they can repay the proposed borrowed money staying within the approved budget, that would be within their given authority. I would say “Fantastic. Job well done.”. If repaying this new debt exceeds the current budget for any reason, they will have set aside the clear wishes of the voters,  namely, don’t spend money we haven’t approved by vote. They also will have exceeded any authority given them by the voters.

Also, let’s make certain money is wisely spent as dictated by the facility’s actual pressing need for the safety, welfare, and education of our children and not simply to meet some particular grant guidelines. For instance if only portions of the plumbing system are in need of repairs, then do that, instead of replacing the entire plumbing system. Voters are crying out for common sense and fiscal responsibility.

David Selwyn

Orcas Island