I'm afraid if you just raise the county tax rates it will merely encourage more better-off people to move out of Prince George's, which will just make the problem worse. Since receiving your letter, I've been trying to figure out the relative tax burden of a Prince George's homeowner in comparison with one in Montgomery County, and it is a very complex question. I don't have an answer. I don't say Prince George's County has a failing school system. I say it has a struggling school system but has some real strengths that can be built upon with adequate resources.
Voters are smart and really quite discerning.
They don't want to give a blank check to politicians or school boards who will spend, spend, spend. In the same election that shot down TRIM, voters approved four different bond issues to borrow millions of dollars for various construction projects. In other words, voters voted for clearly targeted spending programs but not open-ended tax increases. If Iris Metts were to propose a large bond issue for school construction, I would wager that our voters would approve it. But all the reduced class sizes and all the new facilities and even a higher wage scale for teachers will not make up for parents who do not have a clue about their children's education.