WHITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 1980, PAGE 9 Edueation costs to go up substantialiy says Sms By MICHAEL KNELL Free Press Staff One of Whitby's Durham Board of Education trustees has indicated that "there will be a significant increase this year" in property taxes for educational purposes. David Sims, one of the town's two representatives on the board, said that taxes will be increased this year but was reluctant to say by how much. "I really don't wish to release that until the budget is presented to the board," on the 28th of the month, Sims said. He did say, however, that the biggest jump in the budget will be provisions for salaries although he was quick to point out that 90 per cent of the board's budget is for that purpose. The over 3,000 employees of the board "will certainly represent the largest in- crease in the budget," he said. Sims, a lawyer, said that the presentation coming before the board does not recommend any reduction or elimination of services. "I anticipated that we will be able to màintain our existing program," he said noting that the board's provincial grants will be in- creased this year. "In absolute dollars the amount of money coming from the province has in- creased," .Sims said, however, this will not take any of the load off the local taxpayer. "The result in the final analysis is we'll again be asking, this year, the tax- payer to pick up more of the cost of education," he said. When asked whether or not the cost of education was "going through the roof". Sims replied no and in- dicated that he believed the public was not overly con- cerned with the cost of education if they got what they were paying for. "We know that from some public opinion polls that the public has indicated that they are prepared to see more money put into education," Sims said ad- ding that they "want more value for their money." The veteran trustee also defended the budgetary record of the Durham Board. "The Board of Education in the Region of Durham is one of the most frugal of any board of comparative size in the Province of Ontario," he said. He also pointed out two factors that tend to make education expensive. "It had been decided in this province in the 1850's that it was committed 'to public education," Sims said adding that no school system in the province would shut down because of lack of fun- ds as have some school boards in parts of the United States. The other factor is one of labor relations. "With the exception of 70 to 90 people, all of our staff are represented by teacher federations or unions are we are subject to the collective bargaining process," he said adding almost immediately that he is not opposed to the process of bargaining. Since salaries comprise 90 per cent of the board's budget, it is as much a "product of the inflationary times that we live in as anything," he said. Sims said that the board and their workers negotiate one year agreements because it is not possible for the trustees to predict what the conditions will be like in two years and any contract settled on for that period of time will have to reflect the economic conditions that lie ahead. Therefore, he said, it is better to settle for one year contracts, he claims. When the board's budget is handed down on April 28, Whitby taxpayers will know how much their taxes will increase, in total, in 1980. TYPEWRITERS RENT-IT = stM LATEST MODELS• *IBM SELECTRIC • CORRECTORS • OLYMPIA *ADDING MACHINES' • UNDERWOOD •ELECT RONIC CALCUL ATORS- • SMIT H CORON A •DICT ATION UNITS - " TELEPHONE ANSWERING MACHINES DANFORTH TYPEWRITER 408 Dundas Street WVest 2940 Danforth Ave Whitby - Toronto- est 1930