School Board critic pays fine, makes every penny count

Terry Webster

Friday, Aug. 25, 2000 | 10:33 a.m.

A frequent critic of the Clark County School District cleared his indebtedness to the district in hard cash -- $473.10 worth of pennies.

Louis Overstreet said he rented a hand cart to haul in about 300 pounds worth of 47,310 rolled and packaged pennies to the district's Flamingo Road office as payment for an Ethics Commission fine. He made delivery Thursday, just before the School Board's regular meeting.

Overstreet had filed an ethics complaint against a School Board trustee for a statement she allegedly made in reference to the awarding of a contract. The complaint was deemed frivolous and Overstreet was ordered to pay the district's attorney fees.

An Aug. 7 letter from school district attorney Bill Hoffman advised Overstreet to make the payment within 15 days, "or I will pursue other legal efforts to collect the indebtedness."

During public commentary, Overstreet said he didn't mind making the payment.

"It is worth every penny to me for two reasons," he said. "It allowed me to enter into the public record the documentation of how rigged the process is for the award of professional service contracts.

"And it is going to expose to the public how the district's legal department is wasting millions of dollars in pursuing political vendettas. So, it should be no mystery as to why this department refuses to make public the amount of money it is spending."

During the School Board's regular meeting, Superintendent Carlos Garcia announced that the district received a Government Finance Officers' certificate of achievement for excellence in financial reporting for the fiscal year 1999.

On another matter, the School Board discussed a policy change that would bar religious benedictions or invocations during high school commencement exercises.

Board members Ruth Johnson and Sheila Moulton both said they do not agree with the measure, but will approve it in order to comply with the law.

The policy will be considered for final approval during the board's regular Sept. 14 meeting.