Bethpage-Tribune_1974-12-05

              BETHP/GE
MEMBER
also serving I N L A N D T R E ES
OLD BETHB«GE PLAINVIEW PLAINEDGE SEAFORD
VOL. 9 MO. 2 Thursday, December 5, 1974 10 cents per copy
Bethpage High Sehwl Board of Supervisor's Meeting December 2, 1974
Interesting
Ideas 1974
County Democrats Urge
••Hall Government Spending"
Unless parents, Board of
Education members, taxpayers
were present daily while the
Bethpage H.S. is in session, they
would miss the innovative,
creative variety of experiences
the faculty prepares, presents
and involves students in.
Two experiences presented this
month of November - one in
social studies and the other in
science by Mr. H. Jalovaara and
Mrs. S. Eyler, are representative
of the faculties application of
basic psychological principles of
learnings: -
In Mr. Jalovaara's World His­tory
classes boys were assigned
to procure low cost wood, and
others with manual skills
fashioned the wood into the type
of cross used by the Romans to
execute criminals. This type
punishment was used for slaves
supporting Spartacus Revolt.
Other students volunteered or
were chosen to be slaves to be
crucified. Still others served as
Roman soldiers conducting the
executions along "the Appian
Way" - the adjoining school
corridor. Students participating
became aware of events of the
period graphically and appre­ciated
the end result of rebellion
against established authority.
In laboratory session Mrs.
Eyler's Biology students used
decks of cards and coins to ex­plore
the laws of genetics
following pre-determined keys
and ground rules. The cards
represented alleles and the coin
tosses determined the events of
meiosis. The face cards and
numbers through nine repre­sented
traits such as hair line,
ear lobe, tongue rolling, hitch­hiker's
thumb, etc. Student
players served as teams of two
(2) tossing coins and placing
cards as indicated by toss and
color on "Offspring Boards."
Three data tables are completed
by each player of the game as
played. The data compiled forms
the basis for discussion and con­clusion
of basic questions -
"why does a trait get "lost" or
skip a generation?"
"why may a child resemble a
grandparent more closely than a
parent?"
"why are siblings not exactly
alike even though parents are the
same?"
From the evidence gathered,
students cite examples of the
laws of dominance, segregation
and independent assortment and
apply the laws of genetics in a
follow-up laboratory exercise
called "Is It All in the Family"
with data tables, trait
examination illustrations and
specific instructions in pre­paration
tor the student conduct
of this exercise.
These two instances cited are
just a couple of examples of the
(Continued on Page 3)
The Nassau Democratic Party called today on the
Board of Supervisors to "bite the bullet" by appointing
a Commission to recommend reductions in the cost of
delivering government services to Nassau residents;
to inform the public about the County's true fiscal
condition; and to freeze raises of all appointed per­sonnel
earning salaries over $20,000.
In remarks prepared for today's budget hearing
before the Board of Supervisors in Mineola, Horace Z.
Kramer, speaking for Democratic County Chairman
Stanley Harwood, and the Democratic Party, said, "It
is the moral and legal responsibility of the board
members to unravel the many fiscal mysteries of the
1975 budget for the public before it is adopted."
Harwood said the County has a ready instrument
that could be used to slash government costs that has
never been utilized by the current Board of Super­visors.
He cited Section 1-7.0 of the Nassau County
Administrative Code that provides for the creation of a
17 member Commission on Governmental Revisions
who would serve without compensation, that would
have the power to perform an examination of the
delivery of services in Nassau County with a goal of
achieving economy in government.
"The Commission should be appointed immediately
to begin work on a project of dovetailing town and
county services to achieve maximum economy in
government. Such a commission should be a truly bi­partisan
group of taxpayers, appointed by the County
Executive in the tradition of former County Executive
A. Holly Patterson and Eugene H. Nickerson.
Harwood warned that there is a very real possibility
that a $30 million budget gap exists.
"Despite the dimensions of Mr. Caso's increases,
critics, including both Democrats and Republicans,
newspapers, civic groups, the Nassau County Comp­troller
and the Presiding Supervisor of Hempstead, are
not satisfied that the Caso administration has
presented the full picture of the financial plight of
Nassau County," Harwood said.
"It has been suggested that there is a budget gap of
some $20 million. Our own figures indicate this gap is
closer to $30 million. What is the truth? Who can the
citizens of Nassau County look to for the answers to
these puzzling questions? We submit that it is the
required to balance the Coliseum account?
Harwood recommended that the salaries of all ap­pointive
personnel earning more than $20,000, be kept
at the 1974 level and not be included in CSEA, or
similar negotiations.
Harwood said, "The savings would amount to a
minimum of a half million dollars. That might not
seem like a lot of money to the people who made up this
budget, but to the taxpayers who are footing the bill, it
is a fortune. At least it would be a start.
"Substantial savings could have been realized
through a concerned effort by the Town Supervisors to
consolidate overlapping services. They have never
made a serious effort to effect such changes and the
appointment of the Commission I have just recom­mended
should be done immediately to show the public
that the Supervisors are not just interested in
preserving their "Turf" but are genuinely interested in
the welfare of all the citizens.
"This is not a radical suggestion. As long ago as 1938
Consolidation of government services was provided for
in two sections of the County Government Law, and
these were never used by the town governments.
Section 1102 permits the County Attorney to act as
advisor or representative of any town, village or city
within the county at their request (All three towns keep
increasing their budgets for the Town Attorney, and
hiring outside attorneys for special fees without ever
seeking relief from this section. Section 1206 permits
the County Department of Public Works to perform
engineering and other services for any town, village or
city within the county at the actual cost of rendering.
How much money would be saved if our towns did not
hire outside engineers, and did not continue to fill up
their own Public Works departments with patronage
jobs?
"We would save millions of dollars for our taxpayers
if we had one highway department instead of four-one
receiver of taxes instead of four-one Electronics Data
Processing Center-one Planning Commission-one
Department for the Aging-one Drug Control Agency-one
Department for Commerce and Industry-one Civil
Service Commission and one Labor Department."
Harwood said.
"Any reluctance on the part of this Board of
responsibility of the Town Supervisors, the Republican Supervisors to effect any possible savings to the tax-majority
of the Board, who have the legal respon- payers can only be viewed as irresponsible and not
sibility to unravel these fiscal mysteries before they responsive to the wishes of the electorate as expressed
adopt this proposed budget. Certainly a token gesture in Nassau on November 5th. There was a message to
of a 1 percent and 2 percent reduction of the General you gentlemen on that day, when the voters rejected
Fund tax levy will not be sufficient. Nassau County Proposition One, and the message is
Harwood posed six questions for the supervisors this-the people of Nassau are dissatisfied with county
about the budget: government. You must commit yourselves to reducing
1. What, in truth, will be the deficit in County General tne S j z e 0f government instead of increasing it.
Fund operations as of December 31, 1974? "And finally, let us emphasize in the strongest terms
2. What is a reasonable amount to set aside for CSEA possible that the County Executive does not have the
employee negotiations?
3. What 1974 expenditures will remain as en­cumbrances
against the 1975 General Fund?
4. What is a responsible estimate for sales tax
receipts for 1975?
5. How much in money from the General Fund will be
necessary to balance the expenditures of the Medical
Center for 1975?
6. How much in additional tax money will be
sole responsibility for the fiscal affairs of Nassau
County. You, the Board of Supervisors, have the final
responsibility, and you, the Town Supervisors, have
complete control of this Board. Token tax cuts,
pretended shock, hand-wringing, and even tears, will
not solve our fiscal crisis. You own the taxpayers more
than that. You owe the taxpayers the willingness to
shed political loyalties and adopt County loyalties as
your first and only priority," Harwood concluded.