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Neoga school board OKs teachers' contract, repayment of tax money to Reliant Energy(Herald & Review (Decatur, IL) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Nov. 10--NEOGA -- One issue has been in the making for at least four years. The other has been brewing for about a year. They both came to a head Thursday, when the Neoga school board voted both to pay back a local power plant more than $2.8 million in overcharged property taxes, and to formally approve the agreement with the Neoga Teachers Association that ended a teachers strike earlier this week. The two topics are closely related, as the school board repeatedly linked its unwillingness to meet the union's demands with financial woes caused by the repayment of property taxes to Reliant Energy. "I've been on the board four years, and (the Reliant issue) has been on the agenda about every time," said Mark Tarter, school board president. "It's finally coming to some closure." But even though the board voted unanimously to give back the $2.8-million-plus -- which was held in reserve pending a court decision about whether some of the rural Shelby County power plant's equipment was taxable -- the decision to approve the "temporary settlement" with the teachers was split, with Tarter and school board member Douglas Deters both voting against the measure. Deters cited the teachers' salary schedule, which was a key sticking point during the contract talks that eventually eroded to the point of a 12-day teachers strike, as his and Tarter's reason for casting the lone dissenting votes. The teachers had argued for a salary schedule that afforded uniform pay raises, not staggered in favor of higher increases for newer teachers. "I liked the (salary) steps the way they were," Deters said following Thursday's board meeting. "They attracted newer teachers to the community." Collective bargaining teams met last Saturday for about 12 hours and hashed out the agreement. Students and teachers returned to the classrooms Monday, after an extended absence that began Oct. 19. According to officials, details of the new three-year agreement will not be released until attorneys draw up a formal contract, although all of the elements of the settlement, including the approval of both sides, will be incorporated, officials said. Meanwhile, the board on Thursday also approved an amended school calendar in light of the strike. According to Superintendent Debby Poindexter, the district will make up for 10 of the 12 missed days. Teachers will lose two days' pay, while the district will forgo two days of state funding. The end of the school year will be extend four days, until May 25, and classes will be held on four holidays, including Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Presidents' Day. Contact Nathaniel West at [email protected] or 238-6860. Copyright (c) 2006, Herald & Review, Decatur, Ill. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |