Despite the downturn in the economy and rising unemployment, school taxes keep climbing, putting a severe burden on homeowners and particularly on the elderly living on fixed incomes.

School taxes for Elmont rose a whopping 23 percent for the elementary schools plus 7.9 percent for the high school district, a near record for Long Island. This means that the average Elmont homeowner will be paying $475 more in school taxes.

School taxes in West Hempstead increased 9.62 percent or $313 for the average home. In Franklin Square, higher school spending will cost the average household $230 more in school taxes.

Teachers' salaries are driving school budgets higher and pushing the pay of more and more teachers to above $100,000 for a 10-month school year. The new contract won by West Hempstead teachers gives them annual pay raises and step increases that together average seven percent a year, three times the inflation rate.

With extra pay for coaching, the pay of West Hempstead teachers can come close to $105,000. A teacher with a salary of nearly $100,000 is paid $3,000 extra for supervising kids in the cafeteria.

Under the new contract, a West Hempstead teacher who is now paid $83,700 will get a salary plus step increase of $5,400 next year raising her annual pay to $89,100. Education credits will add to that salary. For every school day, this teacher will be paid about $500.

Next year, the average retiree on Social Security will receive for a total annual benefit of $10,740, an increase of $156. This entire amount and more will be consumed by the rise in school taxes. In fact, all of the average retiree's Social Security checks for the year will probably be needed to pay for property taxes, health insurance premiums and medication costs.

Small wonder that illegal rentals are multiplying in our community.

School administrators keep asking for more state aid, but New York State is facing a huge budget deficit that has already reached $9 billion and is growing. The state's income tax collections have fallen by 26.8 percent while estimated taxes are down by 31.1 percent mainly due to the Wall Street bubble bursting.

Public schools must go on a fiscal diet; the state cannot keep subsidizing high spending school districts. Spending on education is now the second largest expense in the state budget.

Public schools must operate more effectively and be accountable for their performance. The first step is to institute merit pay for teachers based on how well their students perform. Now, the best teacher and worst one get the same pay and benefits. That's a teachers union rule and the school superintendent's hands are tied. A rule like that could bankrupt any business firm.