Members of Darlington County School District, along with its local legislative delegation, discussed the district’s test results and the impact Act 388, the property-tax relief law, has on the district during its annual legislative dinner Wednesday night.
The dinner is held every year in order to give the Darlington County School District Board of Education an opportunity to speak with members of the local legislative delegation about legislative issues facing the district and the state.
The delegation members present included state Reps. Denny Neilson and Robert Williams, both of Darlington, and Jay Lucas of Hartsville, and state Sen. Gerald Malloy of Hartsville.
Superintendent Dr. Rainey Knight started the dinner with a discussion on the district’s student achievement test results for the 2006-07 school year.
Knight said the district was rated as Below Average on the district’s School Report Card and that the rating was unacceptable.
Darlington County wasn’t the only school district in the state to receive the rating.
Knight said the district is working hard to improve its rating and is developing a plan to help the district improve its scores.
The group also had a lengthy discussion on high school graduation rates. Graduation rates count on a school and district’s School Report Card rating.
G.C. White, the district’s comptroller, provided information on Act 388 and the impact it has on not only Darlington County, but districts across the state.
Act 388 eliminated school operating property taxes on owner-occupied homes — taxes upon which school districts rely. A 1-cent sales tax will be used in place of the property taxes.
“The education funding in South Carolina is really bad,” White said. “It’s going to kill education if they don’t do something about it.”
White said the new law doesn’t allow room for the district to support all of its expenditures or add new programs.
It’s possibly the district could have a revenue shortage of more than $1 million.
Lucas said he will continue to push a bill that would call for some changes in the law, which would help Darlington County receive funding it has lost because of Act 388.
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Darlington County School District: www.darlington.k12.sc.us
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Darlington County School District holds annual legislative dinner
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Published: November 28, 2007
Published: November 28, 2007
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