The Journal Times Online - Racine, Wisconsin

The minimum wage is going up to $7.25 for most folks today, but before you start getting excited about all that extra money, keep the following in mind.

Many service-type industries (restaurants, stores, etc) pay the minimum wage to their entry-level employees. If these small businesses have to pay more to their employees, and pay a higher amount for the employer part of the SS, what do you think is going to happen?

Will these small business owners just "eat" the difference, or do you think they might raise their prices?

Independent business-owners will be affected the most. Expect to pay more for that pizza delivery, round of golf, and just about anything else.

I understand that folks need money, but minimum wage was NEVER meant to sustain a family.

As we all know, many school districts are facing deficits because their preliminary budgets for the upcoming school year were done before the governor signed the state budget.

RUSD, Racine county's largest school district, will be receiving  $8.2M less than expected under the new budget.

To make up for the loss in state aid, the rate would need to increase to $8.09 from last year's $7.22. That increase would mean the owner of $100,000 home would pay $809.00 for the RUSD portion of their property taxes.

* Proposed tax levy

The school board will be discussing the budget and the state aid decrease at their July 20th meeting. The meeting starts at 6:30PM, in Unified's administrative building on Northwestern Avenue.

Racine Unified officials have no formal ideas on new budget cuts. Instead they are looking for input from employees and the community. So,  it might be worth your time to stop in and voice your opinion, no matter what your opinion should be!

Before you get excited - the school district is NOT Racine Unified - it's MPS. Remember a few months ago, when the Citizens for Responsible Government posted an online database of all MPS invoices?

Now MPS has taken the reins and has started posted the information themselves, according to a recent JSonline article.

Do you think RUSD should do the same? Why or why not?