Here is where our taxes go for Education

[wooffer]

Honestly, you can't blame the teachers for taking what is being offered to them... I must say that in the same position I probably would as well.. the difference would be that I couldn't with a straight face say that I didn't know it was wrong and that I deserved to make more money and get better benefits than the people paying me.

You hit the nail on the head. I have friends who are teachers and I say good for them, because they have the moral backbone to admit that they are milking the system (taxpayers) and admit "if someone is gonna why not me". That I can at least respect.

[sits in trees]

Couldn't agree more with you Karpteach. Unfortunately, it's a lot easier for some to complain about what they don't have than to actually do something about it!! Definately seems like that's the trend society is taking today!!!

once again all well and good, but the moneys done gone, what to do??? teachers are great at letting everyone know how important they are and how much schooling they had to indure. the truth is we could go to a system like they have in other states where teachers are paid a decent salary but have to pay into pension and healthcare on thier own to keep our taxes down, and the sky would not fall. hey might actually help the economy if people werent so tax/cash strapped, hows that for an idea?

[sits in trees]

_{Parents don't get it, everytime they vote "yes" for "the kids", they are actually voting "NO" for their future. People on LI are complaining because their kids can't afford housing on LI and are forced to leave. Well wake up idiot parents, you created the mess with all your "yes" votes. The school boards would have never given away our money on teachers salaries if they didn't have it in the first place.}

this is very true, i still hear people telling me they cant beleive what their tax bill has grown to and they might have to sell but they voted yes on every years budget since i dont know when....

[sits in trees]

a big part of this problem is complacency, we just have too many people that just wont vote or are too lazy to get their arses out there to vote no?? its the truth just ask around to see how many have actually went to vote and you will get, ohhhh couldnt make it, or ohhh that was last night i forgot! or my favorite is ohhh it doesnt matter anyway???? or i dont get involved in town politics...for those of you who dont vote and there is a huge portion of our towns population that doesnt "you deserve what you get, and that is hight taxes!

i live in a district that has a population of 16 thousand people and we get less then 3000 voters on the school budget every year????????? PEOPLE must get out and VOTE!!!!

[Pav2704]

once again all well and good, but the moneys done gone, what to do??? teachers are great at letting everyone know how important they are and how much schooling they had to indure. the truth is we could go to a system like they have in other states where teachers are paid a decent salary but have to pay into pension and healthcare on thier own to keep our taxes down, and the sky would not fall. hey might actually help the economy if people werent so tax/cash strapped, hows that for an idea?

I don't mind the discussion when "Facts" are accurate. The truth of the matter is that teachers are required to pay into their pensions. We pay 3% of our salary yearly. Teacher contributions makes up roughly 90% of our pensions. I provided that link already. All NYS teachers pay for their health care and copays. We also contribute soley to our 403b the equivalent to the private sectors 401k. Doesn't private sector employers match 50 - 50 with employee contributions here???

***Another interesting piece of information which nobody mentioned*** For every tax dollar that Long Island pays, 50 cents goes Upstate. How is that fair??? Maybe if our tax dollars stayed on Long Island, our property taxes wouldn't be out of control!!!

[sits in trees]

I don't mind the discussion when "Facts" are accurate. The truth of the matter is that teachers are required to pay into their pensions. We pay 3% of our salary yearly. Teacher contributions makes up roughly 90% of our pensions. I provided that link already. All NYS teachers pay for their health care and copays. We also contribute soley to our 403b the equivalent to the private sectors 401k. Doesn't private sector employers match 50 - 50 with employee contributions here???

***Another interesting piece of information which nobody mentioned*** For every tax dollar that Long Island pays, 50 cents goes Upstate. How is that fair??? Maybe if our tax dollars stayed on Long Island, our property taxes wouldn't be out of control!!!

hey Pav, if i were you i wouldnt come out with the particulars of you beni's as a teacher, could put you right into the pompous category or let them eat cake club again.

OK you put 3% into your pensions wich will provide you with atleast 50% of your salary for as long as you live...thats a deal a private contractor or average blue collar middle class worker could only dream off.

OK you contribute to your healthcare, the truth is you contribute very little on a percentage basis for a health care plan that once again, average blue collar middle class worker could only dream off. dental, vision, low copays, and barely any real out of pocket expense. and this insurance is something you can keep even if you become disabled, retired or whatever for life, once again, average blue collar middle class worker could only dream off.

and heres my favorite part, private sector employees have there 401k's matched at 50/50???????????, this is the part that really throws you into the realm of pompotism let them eat cakedum out of touch with reality club again. once again a 50/50 match on a 401K in the private sector is something the average blue collar middle class worker could only dream off, the truth is if an employer even does any match its never more than 5% and mostly 2% up to 1/10th of your salary..oh and as far as your LI tax dollar being cut in half and sent up to us poor trailer park toothless upstate slobs that is pure and unadulterated BUNK??when the poo, poo hits the fan us upstaters will do just fine, and your just trying to divert attention from the real topic at hand which is what any smart teacher/politician would naturally do.

i hate to say this but you are better off keeping your conversations about your pay and beni's amongst your own type, yes teachers, because thats the only group of people who can really sit there and think it's all so normal...

Edited March 11, 2012 by sits in trees

[wooffer]

I don't mind the discussion when "Facts" are accurate. The truth of the matter is that teachers are required to pay into their pensions. We pay 3% of our salary yearly. Teacher contributions makes up roughly 90% of our pensions. I provided that link already. All NYS teachers pay for their health care and copays. We also contribute soley to our 403b the equivalent to the private sectors 401k. Doesn't private sector employers match 50 - 50 with employee contributions here???

***Another interesting piece of information which nobody mentioned*** For every tax dollar that Long Island pays, 50 cents goes Upstate. How is that fair??? Maybe if our tax dollars stayed on Long Island, our property taxes wouldn't be out of control!!!

For the sake of our children I hope you NOT a math teacher. Then again maybe you are and that is why our kids perform worse and worse every year. Put the Union Newsletter down and do some real research. How can you contribute 3% of your pay and then collect 50% of your pay when you retire.Not to mention free health insurance for the rest of your life. Did you pre-pay for that too?

Is that the new math? You don't contribute 90% towards your pensions. Your postings are doing teachers a great dis-service. I take that back, actually I think they are very reflective of the individuals teaching today. Keep posting your inane comments and opinions, they make my side of the argument even easier.

Have someone read this article to you in todays paper and maybe you'll understand what we are saying

http://www.newsday.c...ficit-1.3594149

Here is another old but very accuarate article.

http://www.nytimes.c...?pagewanted=all

One more

http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/miarticle.htm?id=6759

Edited March 11, 2012 by wooffer

[Dave]

I don't mind the discussion when "Facts" are accurate. The truth of the matter is that teachers are required to pay into their pensions. We pay 3% of our salary yearly. Teacher contributions makes up roughly 90% of our pensions. I provided that link already. All NYS teachers pay for their health care and copays. We also contribute soley to our 403b the equivalent to the private sectors 401k. Doesn't private sector employers match 50 - 50 with employee contributions here???

***Another interesting piece of information which nobody mentioned*** For every tax dollar that Long Island pays, 50 cents goes Upstate. How is that fair??? Maybe if our tax dollars stayed on Long Island, our property taxes wouldn't be out of control!!!

I don't know where you got the idea the the private sector matches 401k contributions 50-50. That's not true, lots fo companies have no 401k to offer. Ones that do only match a small precentage .

That may come out to about 3% if that. But if you don't participate the company matches nothing.

[wooffer]

I don't know where you got the idea the the private sector matches 401k contributions 50-50. That's not true, lots fo companies have no 401k to offer. Ones that do only match a small precentage .

That may come out to about 3% if that. But if you don't participate the company matches nothing.

He only knows part of the story. Some companies do match 50% but up to some low annual amount like $5k, after that no match to yourpension. They can stop it at anytime which they did on me when times got tough, and don't guarantee a 8% return like on public pensions.

Edited March 11, 2012 by wooffer

[Dave]

He only knows part of the story. Some companies do match 50% but to some low annual amount like $5k. But they can stop it at anytime which they did on me, and don't guarantee a 8% return like on public pensions.

Wooffer you are right. Before I retired my company had stopped contributing to our 401K plan when the market was down. They only matched a small % of your salary. The max you could contribute was 6%. and then the company would match 50% of the 6%. Far cry from a 50-50 match. So that would be a 3% match. You could put in more if you wanted that's up to you.

[wooffer]

_{Got to run to work, later guys.}

[Pav2704]

If life is so bad as you make it out to be, maybe you shouldn't own a home. Maybe you are in over your head. You can rent and wouldn't have to pay any school taxes. The CHOICE is yours!!! Many others have showed how most monetary aspects of our lives have increased over the past ten years, not just school taxes. You could always become teacher if we have it so great!!! You chose your career!!! However, its definately easier for people to complain about how good others have it. My father said, "If you want something, WORK for it"!!! I DID!!!

Here's the link, once again, that explains who's funds teacher pensions. Like I said, all teachers pay 3% of their yearly salary. When you retire, you collect, as other TEACHERS continue to pay in towards the system. If you don't understand that MATH, maybe you did have a bad teacher????

http://www.nystrs.org/main/library/NYSTRS-Dollar.pdf

Here's another link that explains the inequality in school funding that I mentioned already. It explains how poorer schools upstate receive more state funding (which is payed by tax payers) than Long Island schools, which is why school taxes on Long Island continue to increase.

http://www.longislandexchange.com/press/2012/02/29/community-to-lobby-for-educational-equity-for-all/

[ELMER J. FUDD]

Pav, your graph says that teachers paid less than $3billion and taxpayers Paid over $12 billion. from '91-'11 to the teacher's. Pension fund.

[ELMER J. FUDD]

It also says that over $63 billion was paid out. Care to elaborate on that one?

[sits in trees]

I don't mind the discussion when "Facts" are accurate. The truth of the matter is that teachers are required to pay into their pensions. We pay 3% of our salary yearly. Teacher contributions makes up roughly 90% of our pensions. I provided that link already. All NYS teachers pay for their health care and copays. We also contribute soley to our 403b the equivalent to the private sectors 401k. Doesn't private sector employers match 50 - 50 with employee contributions here???

***Another interesting piece of information which nobody mentioned*** For every tax dollar that Long Island pays, 50 cents goes Upstate. How is that fair??? Maybe if our tax dollars stayed on Long Island, our property taxes wouldn't be out of control!!!

hey Pav, i did receive a public school education and never really excelled at math but the part about teachers putting 3% of your salaries to your own pensions and then saying your contributions make up Roughly 90% of your pensions doesnt add up whatsoever???i dont care what link you provided to prove this fallacy it just doesnt add up. there isnt an investment in this universe that will pay a person back like that.. the truth is most public unions pension funds are in the red and will not be able to pay out in less than 10 years, thats even with increasing the strangle hold on the taxpayer, thats the problem with all this "it dont ADD UP!!!

[sits in trees]

For the sake of our children I hope you NOT a math teacher. Then again maybe you are and that is why our kids perform worse and worse every year. Put the Union Newsletter down and do some real research. How can you contribute 3% of your pay and then collect 50% of your pay when you retire.Not to mention free health insurance for the rest of your life. Did you pre-pay for that too?

Is that the new math? You don't contribute 90% towards your pensions. Your postings are doing teachers a great dis-service. I take that back, actually I think they are very reflective of the individuals teaching today. Keep posting your inane comments and opinions, they make my side of the argument even easier.

Have someone read this article to you in todays paper and maybe you'll understand what we are saying

http://www.newsday.c...ficit-1.3594149

Here is another old but very accuarate article.

http://www.nytimes.c...?pagewanted=all

One more

http://www.manhattan...cle.htm?id=6759

DAMN Woofer your good!! remind me never to get into a dispute with you!!

[nyantler]

It also says that over $63 billion was paid out. Care to elaborate on that one?

Easy there Elmer .. you don't want to confuse these these teachers with the real facts..LOL

[nyantler]

If life is so bad as you make it out to be, maybe you shouldn't own a home. Maybe you are in over your head. You can rent and wouldn't have to pay any school taxes. The CHOICE is yours!!! Many others have showed how most monetary aspects of our lives have increased over the past ten years, not just school taxes. You could always become teacher if we have it so great!!! You chose your career!!! However, its definately easier for people to complain about how good others have it. My father said, "If you want something, WORK for it"!!! I DID!!!

Here's the link, once again, that explains who's funds teacher pensions. Like I said, all teachers pay 3% of their yearly salary. When you retire, you collect, as other TEACHERS continue to pay in towards the system. If you don't understand that MATH, maybe you did have a bad teacher????

http://www.nystrs.or...STRS-Dollar.pdf

Here's another link that explains the inequality in school funding that I mentioned already. It explains how poorer schools upstate receive more state funding (which is payed by tax payers) than Long Island schools, which is why school taxes on Long Island continue to increase.

http://www.longislan...equity-for-all/

Did you really say that we should choose not to own our own home so that you can continue to enjoy your lavish taxpayer funded lifestyle without anyone to call you out for wasting our hard earned money?....How about as free people we should be able to enjoy owning our own home and still have a say about how our tax dollars are spent??... and you wonder where all the animosity comes from?? you still haven't gotten that it isn't just how good teachers have it,,, its that its on the backs of the taxpayers who have no say in the matter.

[wooffer]

I can remember another famous quote, "Those that can, do. Those that can't, teach".

I'll be glad to send you a bolt cutter so you can escape that horrible teaching job. Not sure how you can put up with a 180 (part-time) days of it.

Please don't forget that you don't pay taxes like we do. You work for the taxpayer and as such simply return your ill-gottrn gains. We generate the money for you by selling a good that people are not forced to accept and be charged for.

[sits in trees]

If life is so bad as you make it out to be, maybe you shouldn't own a home. Maybe you are in over your head. You can rent and wouldn't have to pay any school taxes. The CHOICE is yours!!! Many others have showed how most monetary aspects of our lives have increased over the past ten years, not just school taxes. You could always become teacher if we have it so great!!! You chose your career!!! However, its definately easier for people to complain about how good others have it. My father said, "If you want something, WORK for it"!!! I DID!!!

Here's the link, once again, that explains who's funds teacher pensions. Like I said, all teachers pay 3% of their yearly salary. When you retire, you collect, as other TEACHERS continue to pay in towards the system. If you don't understand that MATH, maybe you did have a bad teacher????

http://www.nystrs.or...STRS-Dollar.pdf

Here's another link that explains the inequality in school funding that I mentioned already. It explains how poorer schools upstate receive more state funding (which is payed by tax payers) than Long Island schools, which is why school taxes on Long Island continue to increase.

http://www.longislan...equity-for-all/

there he goes again, let them eat cake, hey we all know what happened to that chick...

[Fishin Magician]

not going to read all your inputs..lost track half way through....

simply drug test all the teachers and you will see those figures go way down..don't forget the registered nurses as well....

what do you think about that............

[wooffer]

not going to read all your inputs..lost track half way through....

simply drug test all the teachers and you will see those figures go way down..don't forget the registered nurses as well....

what do you think about that............

I agree but don't see limiting it to teachers. Anyone who gets acheck from the taxpayers either through employment or even food stamps should have to that. I work for a private company and I had to do it.

Of course I don't think all government employees would pass and think we may be even worse off with Biden as president.

[erussell]

Wow!!! Sell your home and become a ten. to some rich dude from NY city is what I heard, since most of the slums lords in Binghamton are from NY City. If I couldnt afford a house what makes you think I can afford to rent? I went to private school and we made do with a 1/4 of what public schools do. And all you hear from the public school teachers is we need more money and we can make it work. Well after how many yrs of throwing money at the school system to make it work and it hasnt even put a dent in it. Give me a break. And the 50% 401k match went out the window with the bad economy for me to. Time for all the unions to start feeling the pain like real americans have been for the last couple of yrs.

Edited March 12, 2012 by erussell

[sits in trees]

If life is so bad as you make it out to be, maybe you shouldn't own a home. Maybe you are in over your head. You can rent and wouldn't have to pay any school taxes. The CHOICE is yours!!! Many others have showed how most monetary aspects of our lives have increased over the past ten years, not just school taxes. You could always become teacher if we have it so great!!! You chose your career!!! However, its definately easier for people to complain about how good others have it. My father said, "If you want something, WORK for it"!!! I DID!!!

Here's the link, once again, that explains who's funds teacher pensions. Like I said, all teachers pay 3% of their yearly salary. When you retire, you collect, as other TEACHERS continue to pay in towards the system. If you don't understand that MATH, maybe you did have a bad teacher????

http://www.nystrs.or...STRS-Dollar.pdf

Here's another link that explains the inequality in school funding that I mentioned already. It explains how poorer schools upstate receive more state funding (which is payed by tax payers) than Long Island schools, which is why school taxes on Long Island continue to increase.

http://www.longislan...equity-for-all/

you see this is the problem with as i previously discribed to Pav about your pompous teachers. we have no problem with someone making a good living and setting themselves up for a good retirement. heck i myself am working on this everyday of my life and i do believe i will get there one day if my taxes dont keep going up, up, up. but the key word in my last sentance is I MYSELF, not everyone else chip in to help me reach my goal of a secure retirement, right.

yes teachers should make a good living and have a good retirement but not on the backs of the taxpayers. the righting(not a misspelling) is on the wall but unfortunately will be righted by the collapse of the whole pension system which is the only way anything as huge as the teachers union can be corrected. the union leaders and the teachers will never give in with any real adjustments on pensions, they just feel they are entitled and i guess i would too after having politicians and union bosses promising these thing to me for years and years..

[Dave]

Guys another thing that contributes to the decline in tax revenue is that once a state worker retires they pay no state tax. While the rest of us just get a break in the first $20,000 of our retirement . That's one they could fix, but I don't think they will.