European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 01, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse                                On by Louise Cook associated press ight listed taxpayers and declining enrolments Are forcing school districts in Many parts of the United states to fire teachers an trim the curriculum. Experienced teachers Are having a rough time finding a place to  said one Ohio official. The frill courses will probably go added an educator in Colorado. In some places like Michigan the drop in the number of teachers is being offset by a drop in the number of Stu dents to other areas like the West Allegheny District of Pennsylvania youngster returning to school this fall win find classrooms More crowded. Despite recent changes in school financing sys tems local property taxes Are still a key source of Revenue Lor education in most of the country. And these levies Are the target of the spending and tax Cut drive which spread from California to Over Adwen Otter Stales. Given the climate and the mood of the taxpayer today the chances of getting new local school taxes passed by the voters is very Small said James Melton of the Kentucky school boards association. While local funds Are drying Jip smaller enrolments Are reducing state and Federal Aid subsidies which Are tied to the number of pupils. An associated press spot Check showed however that the severity of the problem varies from state to state and even from District to District. In Hawaii officials say no layoffs Are planned Michi Gan educators say the ratio of students to teachers has dropped from 24.8.to 1 in 1971-72 to 23.8 to 1 last year Nevada authorities say enrolment and teacher employ ment Are actually increasing. Ohio educators in contrast report that enrol ment dropped about 4v4 percent from 1975-78 to 1977 71 and Ike number of inf file teachers decreased4 percent Roger Lulow of the Ohio department of education said staff reductions past present and future were due mainly to the increased total Cost of education and or the failure of motors to approve local school  voter in Cleveland have rejected two school tax proposals this year alone officials say they have no Way to balance next year budget let alone make up a s20 Mil lion deficit left from last year. On a nationwide basis figures from the . Office of education show enrolment in Public elementary and secondary schools dropped 7 percent from 1971-72 to 1977.78. While the number of teachers Rose 6 percent. No one knows what this fall s figures will show. Budget troubles Are entrenched in some states. Four i always Falve a utile something for after a. I gave us some of his St years districts in Oregon for example closed temporarily during the 1978-77 school year because voters rejected proposed budgets. Things could get even worse this year if voters approve measure 6." a initiative patterned after California s proposition 13. Limiting property taxes. Other areas Are just beginning to face the Finan Cial squeeze. Philadelphia Laid off 1.800 teachers in May the first time that City teachers had been fired solely to balance the budget. Increased operating costs and Static reve Nues was the Way school District spokesman William Jones summed up the problem. The june 6 passage of proposition 13 brought warnings of mass layoffs in California. The warnings have not come True so far mainly because of a nearly s5 billion state surplus that is being used to make up for revenues lost in the 57 percent property tax Cut. Statewide i doubt if there will be a lot of teachers Laid off said Vic Biondi aide to Wilson riles state school superintendent. The budgets deadline has been extended from aug. 10 to sept. 10. There already have been some cuts however mainly in supplementary services like adult education and summer school and in the number of non teaching employees and authorities express concern about what will happen next year when there May be no surplus to draw on. Our first concern is to keep cuts As far away from the classroom As possible said Bill Mcmurray executive director of the classroom teachers association of Sanfrancisco. Officials la Oregon Are making contingency plans in the event voters approve a november ballot Mea sure limiting property taxes to 1.5 percent of Market value. In Salem property taxes for the fiscal year ended june 30 totalled $31 per 11,000 of valuation or 3.1 percent. There fiscal officer Andy Anderson estimated that Pas Sage of the tax cutting initiative would mean a $12 minion Overall loss and layoffs for 400 of the District s 1,200 teachers. Average class size he said would jump from25 to 40. Missouri officials do not face a major tax or spending initiative like Oregon a but they Are planning cutbacks because of rising costs lower enrolments and voter resistance to higher budgets. The number of teachers in Kansas City is expected to drop from 2,200 last year to 2,050 this year enrolment is estimated at 44,000, Down from 48,000 the projected budget will drop s2 million to$73 million a lot of districts Are having a Money crunch said Stan Boman of the Missouri National education association. He said proposed boosts in school levies which re quire approval of two thirds of the voters Are being rejected. They go Down like crazy Boman said. In the West Allegheny school District just outside of Pittsburgh the school budget initially proposed called for a tax increase of 9 Mills because of Public opposition the new budget includes a 1.5-Mlll increase. Eleven of 154 teaching positions have been eliminated music and Art courses have been curtailed and the average teacher to Pupil ratio will go from 1 to 24 to 1 to 30. The stars and stripes Page 13