Southeast Dubois County School Corporation meeting notes

The Southeast Dubois School board and the Town Council in Ferdinand passed a joint resolution Wednesday afternoon opposing the elimination of the Business Personal Property Tax proposed by Governor Mike Pence.

Many municipalities and school corporations around the state have been creating resolutions to voice their opposition to the plan that would rip essential funding from schools and municipalities state-wide with no replacement revenue.

While the fate of the proposal by the governor to get rid of the tax is uncertain in the general assembly, any possibility that it could pass leaves local officials nervous but unafraid to voice their opinion.

The Southeast School Board and Town Council passed the resolution unanimously.

Also in the meeting the board:

-Voted to approve a bid from Hedinger Roofing of Jasper for $213,000.00 for the repair of part of the roof over Forest Park Jr./Sr. High School. The board received two bids, but the first bid from Preferred Construction Services of Owensboro lacked a financial statement per the bid requirement – so it was rejected.

The roof is 17 years old, and while it was not slated to be replaced until 2017, it is the last major roof replacement that the school corporation will have to accomplish for several years, which makes the expense easier to handle.

That, and the fact that the bid came in under the original estimated cost of $250,000.00 made the decision to move ahead a logical one.

The board approved the bid with the clause that says that any insulation that would need to be replaced would be added into the cost at $1.30 per square foot.

-The board approved the purchase of a new 72 seat bus from Kerlin Bus Sales, Silver Lake, Indiana, in the amount of $92,787.00. The cost includes several add-ons which added to the price. The board also passed an addition of $5,000.00 for a service agreement with the manufacturer, Thomas Built Buses.