BY SUE KIESEWETTER
Enquirer Contributor
FAIRFIELD -- School officials are studying levy options for the November ballot ranging from 2.9 mills to 4.9 mills to maintain programs and keep the Fairfield City Schools solvent.
District treasurer James Rowan outlined three scenarios to board members at Thursday's meeting. Each was based on March state aid projections, and all include $300,000 for staffing and programming increases, if needed, Mr. Rowan said.
The deadline for putting an operating levy on the Nov. 3 ballot is Aug. 20. Earlier this year, board members agreed to put a levy on the ballot but waited to set an amount until the district received state aid figures.
Mr. Rowan said he based his projections on flat enrollment, property valuations based on past growth, and salary increases in line with past raises. The district has begun negotiating with its employee groups for new contracts.
Planning ahead
"These figures might change and we might have to make some changes in the projections after we receive our first state aid payment in July," Mr. Rowan said.
The levy is needed because the district faces a $1.1 million deficit by next June. Under Ohio law, schools cannot end the year with a deficit. If a levy passes in November, collections would begin in January. Last November voters passed a 2-mill levy that allowed the district to end the 1997-98 school year in the black.
The three options under consideration are:
- A 2.9 mill levy, which would raise $2.6 million annually. It would keep the district solvent through the 1999-2000 school year. The district would have a $1.5 million balance in June 2000 but a $1.5 million deficit the following June.
- A 3.9 mill levy, which would raise $3.5 million annually. The district would end the 2000-2001 school year with a $500,000 shortfall, which probably could be erased by minor cuts and careful budgeting.
- A 4.9 mill levy, which would raise $4.4 million annually. The district would end the 2000-2001 school year with a $400,000 balance.
The board is expected to further discuss the three options at its July 30 meeting. Mr. Rowan said he should have final state aid figures by then.
