The Meridian School District will go to district voters May 17 for a two-year, $18.5 million-a-year levy to help pay for operations such as salaries, benefits, supplies, books and utilities.
State assistance accounts for 91 percent of the district’s $161.9 million budget this school year. The Idaho Legislature is expected to cut $62 million in Idaho’s K-12 education money for next year, which the district estimates would shave about $6.8 million from Meridian’s 2011-12 budget.
The declining state aid comes as the recession has weakened property values — from $15 billion in 2008 in the district to an expected $10 billion for 2011, district spokesman Eric Exline said.
New construction and rising values had allowed the district to keep from raising its property tax rate since 1995. But the levy the district will seek in May would raise the rate. If approved, it would push the total to $407 per $100,000 of taxable property value from today’s $323 — an increase of about $84 per $100,000.
By comparison, Boise School District collects about $550 per $100,000.
The Meridian School Board voted Tuesday to take its case to the voters, one day after district board Chairman Mike Vuittonett warned Idaho lawmakers considering an overhaul of state school finances that Meridian had stepped over a “funding cliff.”
The district has absorbed $19 million in state cuts the past two years, Vuittonett said. At the same time, enrollment is expected to reach 35,200 next year, an increase of 1,750 since the 2008-09 school year.
“If we see another $7 million in cuts (next year), we’ll have lost $26 million in funding, but we’ll still be growing,” Vuittonett said.
District voters two years ago passed a two-year, $10 million-a-year operations levy, which expires this year. Last year, voters OK’d raising another $4 million for school operations from the district’s facilities maintenance levy.
To balance this year’s budget, the district cut nine administrative positions, five school days and its supply and book budgets; and went to a new bus system that eliminated 1,400 bus stops districtwide.
Meridian has a history of approving school levies, but voter approval is not guaranteed.
At least 17 Idaho school districts held special levy votes earlier this month; a few failed, and others narrowly passed. In the Treasure Valley, Vallivue voters passed a $4.5 million levy; voters in Homedale and Wilder defeated proposed levies.
The Kuna School District recently announced it will seek a $1.5 million supplemental levy in May.
If Meridian’s May 17 levy request fails, Vuittonett said, the district will have to trim additional days from the school calendar, cut teacher and administrative salaries and ask employees to pay a larger share of their benefits package.
Exline said the district plans to collect just $2.8 million of the $20 million it is authorized to raise under its facilities maintenance levy. It raised almost $7 million from that levy for the current school year, $4 million of which went to operations.
“If we had assessed the full $20 million, it would have added another $190 a year to household property taxes,” Exline said.
Even though the district is proposing to reduce its maintenance levy, its overall levy amount and its property tax rate would rise with passage of the $18.5 million-a-year operations levy.
At least $1.1 million of the district maintenance fund will go to repair the roof on Eagle High School, with another large chunk slated for improvements at middle schools, he said.
Joe Estrella: 377-6465
