Monday, December 13, 1999
Talawanda weighs levy options
School officials meeting tonight to look at plans
BY SUE KIESEWETTER
Enquirer Contributor
OXFORD — Talawanda school officials will have several options as they consider today how much money to seek from voters next year.
Four different operating levies and two bond issues are on the table. The board is expected to make its choice at its 7:30 p.m. meeting at the Butler Rural Electric Co. on Stillwell-Beckett Road.
“What I'd like to try to see us do is keep the total package under 10 mills,” said board member Robert Sherman. “I don't think there's much support for skipping (a March vote) altogether. The longer we wait, the more expensive it will be.”
Talawanda voters last month turned down a ballot issue that included a 0.75 percent income tax for operations and a $34 million bond issue to build a high school and make improvements at the district's other buildings.
During a public meeting two weeks ago, several residents told the board the package was too high and they didn't want an income tax.
“The facility needs and fi nancial needs remain the same,” said Superintendent Susan Cobb. “I think we need to make an attempt to address them.”
Treasurer James Rowan said the district will be out of money in about 18 months unless programs are cut or a levy is approved. The four operating levies proposed would raise between $2 million and $2.9 million, and all but one would keep the district solvent through the 2001-2002 school year.
“My goal was to get through June 2003, and only one of them does that,” Mr. Rowan said. “They will allow us to bring teachers' salaries to the average in the county and continue the programs we have.”
Board President William Vollmer said the board has the option of putting just a bond issue or just an operating levy on the ballot, putting on both or doing nothing. If the board decides to put on both, then it must determine whether it will be a single ballot question or separate ones.
“The options are wide open. There should be a lot of discussion,” Mr. Vollmer said. “I personally can't support an increase of 10 mills. As an individual board member, I think we need to address operating needs. We're 18 months from being in the red, and we'd have to make major cuts. I don't want to see that.”
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