To Our Chamber Members: A strong public education system with high student achievement and appropriate facilities is critical

to economic development. As the economic development agency for Huntsville/Madison County, the Chamber of Commerce is committed to ensuring that our public schools have the resources they need to be successful. In 2011 the Chamber formed an Education Committee to support the school systems in Madison County and hold them accountable for student achievement. Likewise, we must also hold the business community accountable in its support for the resources the schools need. One of the first activities of the Education Committee was engagement on the process for selecting a new superintendent for Huntsville City Schools, which resulted in the hiring of Dr. Casey Wardynski. The Chamber has worked closely with Dr. Wardynski and his team to understand his vision for Huntsville City Schools, and we are convinced that with continued support from the community, Huntsville will have a world-class education system. Last month the Huntsville City Council voted to put a 6.5 mil school ad valorem tax renewal on the Aug 28 ballot. Passage of this renewal, which would otherwise expire in 2015, is critical to the continued funding of Huntsville City Schools. This is not a tax increase or a new tax. It is a renewal of an existing tax that has generated more than $153 million for Huntsville City Schools over the past 11 years. The Chamber has supported school funding efforts in the past. Six years ago, the Chamber supported a half-cent sales tax increase for education, and our support for adequate local funding has only become stronger under the leadership of Dr. Wardynski. It is imperative that the current tax base is, at the very least, maintained to allow for the improvements we expect and are working with our school systems to achieve. The Chambers Executive Committee and Board of Directors have given their approval for the Chamber to take a public position in favor of this tax renewal.

Jim Bolte
2012 Chair of the Board

Chip Cherry, CCE

President & CEO

Don Nalley
2012 Education Committee Chair

Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County

28

225 Church Street / Huntsville, AL 35801 / 256.535.2000 / fax 256.535.2015 www.HuntsvilleAlabamaUSA.com

August 2012 Initiatives