As many voters received ballots on Tuesday, Missoula County Public Schools officials described the need for the three proposed levies to make the most out of a tight budget.
“We have already gone through in the last couple of years and cut all of the fat out of the budget, and so we’re into cutting muscle,” Trustee Lisa Davey said during a press conference Tuesday. “And right now we’re saying, ‘Please, let’s at least keep what we have.’”
In March, the school board voted to set an elementary school operational levy of $384,947, a high school operational levy of $164,315 and a high school safety levy of $1 million for the May 6 ballot.
At current rates, the elementary general fund levy would cost the owner of a $300,000 home an additional $8.67 annually and the owner of a $600,000 home $17.34. For the high school general fund levy, the owner of a $300,000 home would pay another $2 and the owner of a $600,000 home would pay $4.02.
The high school safety levy would cost the owner of a $300,000 home $12.24 annually and the owner of a $600,000 home $24.48.
Superintendent Micah Hill said people sometimes assume that because property taxes have increased that school budgets have also increased, but that’s not necessarily true. The state’s funding formula sets the school district’s general fund maximum budget, largely based on enrollment.
The state supports 80% while the district is responsible for generating the other 20% through measures like the operational levies, Hill said.
“This is where support for our schools is so critical,” he said.
The operational levy revenue pays for things like staff salaries, art, music and physical education programs, counseling, student support services, curriculum and utilities, Hill said. For the high schools, the money also helps pay for Advanced Placement courses, career and technical education programs and extracurricular activities, he said.
The high school safety levy will help offset costs currently covered by the general fund, including upgraded security infrastructure, increased mental health support, school resource officers and safety training, Hill said.
Passing the safety levy is “extremely important,” not just in light of last week’s lockdown at Sentinel High School after a student brought a firearm to school, Hill said.
Hill said the funding would allow the district to address safety concerns proactively, such as through school resource officers, behavior interventionists and counselors who work with students daily and watch for potential red flags.
Trustee Jeffrey Avergis said the district is spending money on safety measures and would like to invest more but can’t without the levy to avoid taking away from other programs.
“What you really want to think about is when you send your kids off to school or you drop them off at school, at a high school, is it worth the investment to feel good about the safety of your child?” Avergis said.
Together, the three levies would cost the owner of an average $450,000 home about $2.75 per month, Hill said.
“We consider these funding priorities, and they provide quality education, enrichment opportunities and safe learning environments for over 9,000 students,” he said. “I believe this represents a tremendous value for our community. Our schools are at the heart of the community. They attract families. They attract businesses to our area. They maintain property values and, most importantly, they prepare our students for success. The return on investment of this will be realized for years to come.”
Last year, the district had four levies on the ballot: the two general fund operations levies, plus elementary and high school safety and security levies. The $1 million high school safety levy was the only one that failed.
While the district is not facing as large a budget shortfall as last year, officials had to “find places to optimize” to make the budget work for this year, Avgeris said.
“So with these levies, we are in good shape,” he said. “But that’s not without already some hurt this year.”
Without the levies, the district would likely have to consider personnel cuts, as staff salaries and benefits make up about 90% of the district’s general fund, Hill said.
“At the end of the day, if the levies don’t pass, we’re going to have to come back to the drawing board and look at what could potentially be reduced, to the detriment of our students and our staff,” he said.
Missoula voters will also decide on three school board trustee positions up for election.
The 11-member board includes seven trustees who represent both elementary and high school districts and four trustees who represent specific communities and only vote on high school district issues.
The four candidates running for three open seats representing both districts include incumbents Wilena Old Person, Meg Whicher and Keegan Witt and newcomer Tim Baigent.
For the high school district “A” and “D” positions, incumbents Ann Wake and Lisa Davey were elected by acclamation on Tuesday, as no one else had filed for the positions by the deadline.
The Missoula County Elections Office mailed about 75,000 ballots on Monday. Polling places will not be open for this mail-only election, according to the office.
Ballots must be received by the elections office by 8 p.m. on Tuesday, May 6. The USPS recommends mailing ballots no later than seven days before Election Day, which for this election is Tuesday, April 29. After that, voters should turn in their ballots at the elections office. On Election Day, additional drop-off locations will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. A full list of locations is available online and printed on the mail-ballot instructions.
“We’d like to remind voters that there’s a tight turnaround from when you receive your ballot to when it’s due back to the Elections Center,” Elections Administrator Bradley Seaman said in a statement. “Make a plan to return your ballot early by mail using the prepaid envelope, or hand-deliver it to one of the many drop locations that will be open on Election Day around the county.”
This story was originally published by Montana Free Press at montanafreepress.org.
