Menu
School board keeps mill levy flat
The USD 234 Board of Education joined other local taxing entities when the panel voted not to raise the local mill levy during a special meeting Thursday.
The board voted 5-2 to approve a motion to amend the 2012-13 budget to reflect no change in the current mill levy. The district's budget will instead take a $40,200 hit in its supplemental general fund, or local option budget; money that was already budgeted that cannot be spent next year, officials said.
About 30-40 people, including city and school officials and community members, filled the board meeting room. Several residents expressed their concerns and opinions to the board on both sides of the debate as to whether the board should raise taxes were heard.
The district was facing a .479 mill levy increase to make up for a recent county miscalculation in assessed property valuation for 2012 that forced all local taxing entities to re-work their budgets. The board tabled the budget until Thursday's meeting so it could have more time to consider the matter before making a decision. The board was faced Thursday with approving the published budget with a .479 mill levy increase, or taking the $40,200 loss in budget authority.
USD 234 Business Manager Tiffany Forester said $20,000 of that amount will be in local taxpayer dollars; the remainder is local option budget state aid.
After the board's vote, district administrators said they were concerned because the money lost would have been a big step toward helping pay for needed maintenance and repairs to facilities and buildings.
Prior to the board vote, USD 234 Superintendent Diane Gross said she supported the mill levy increase as the $40,200 "is needed as a step in terms of all the needs in the district," including buildings and facilities, vehicles, infrastructure, curriculum development and alignment, meeting educational standards and additional support for the district.
"I want to continue to move the budget forward and not take a loss," she said. "It's a step that allows us to move more quickly to address everything."
City Commissioner Cindy Bartelsmeyer said she attended the meeting as a concerned citizen who is "passionate about education and youth in the community." She supported the proposed increase in the mill levy because it would help continue to "provide necessary services to students.
"It's an investment in education and the community," she said.
Following the board vote, Gross said she understood the board's decision, but is concerned about the district having certain funds available to address various district needs in the near future.
"I understand and fully support the direction they want to go," she said. "It's a little frustrating for me after visiting with staff and board members in trying to assess needs ... We do have to prioritize the list. Things have not been addressed in recent years. The list of needs will continue to multiply. Some things will not be done as quickly as we wanted to. We continue to be asked to do more with less, but the needs continue to increase. And we're not given all the resources we need."
Gross added the loss will not result in cutting staff or programs, or impacting students in the immediate future, but those could be affected "down the road."
Local resident Bill Meyer told the board prior to the vote that they were "elected to represent the students" and that he also supported the mill levy increase.
"As I look around, I don't see the 1,800 people who would be affected by the decision today; the students," he said. "It's about taking care of our children and our school system. Let's take care of our children and meet their needs first."
Local resident Chris Maycumber said he attended to speak as a business owner, resident and alumnus of the school district. He supported the option to keep the mill levy flat, not putting a tax burden on citizens.
"Spending more money doesn't necessarily achieve anything," he said, adding costs of fuel and other necessities have risen and a tax increase should not be an option.
The board did not rush to a vote. After taking some time for comments and questions, board member Ken Rienbolt made a motion to keep the mill levy the same as published. The motion was seconded by Steve Floyd. Jordan Witt, Justin Meeks, and Belynda Davenport all voted "yes." The "no" votes were Janet Braun and Michelle Hudiburg.
"I can't vote against the students," Braun said.
Braun and other board members said they appreciated all of the conversations, emails and phone calls from citizens on the issue and the fact that so many citizens attended the meeting to voice opinions.
"They were not rude; they were heartfelt opinions," Braun said. "As public servants, we need to hear what the public has to say," adding she regretted the board had this decision to make due to the recent clerical error.
"We had a planned budget; we wanted things to go the way we expected them to go. Whatever the vote is, we'll all come back together again," Braun told the audience.
Witt said he "likes that it is possible to have a community conversation without tearing the community apart."
Floyd said a "strong case" could be made for both sides of the issue.
"It's a principle thing, not a dollar amount, in my mind," he said. "We could easily be talking about raising the mill levy by 15 times what it is. We've had a reduced budget in recent years and we've found ways to make that work."
Also during the special meeting, the board:
* Ratified the negotiated agreement for the 2012-13 school year.
* Approved the resignations of Winfield Scott teacher aide Kim Domer and middle school football coach Curt Toll, and hired Dakota Hall as a middle school football coach, Jessica Pontious as a high school cook and Tiffany Findley as a Winfield Scott paraeducator.