June 2009 update: Final levy package
The superintendent presented the Levy Development Committee's recommendation to the School Board in May. A subcommittee of the Board then analyzed each levy package in the recommendation alongside key economic indicators (which provide some sense of voter confidence). The subcommittee finished its work in June, and the School Board adopted this final levy package at its June 10 business meeting:
- A four-year Maintenance and Operations Levy in the amount of $35,050,00 in 2011; $37,475,000 in 2012; $40,100,000 in 2013; and $42,900,000 in 2014.
- A one-year School Bus Levy in the amount of $1,700,000.
- A four-year Capital Levy (with critical repairs and technology components) in the amount of $8,875,000 in 2011; $8,531,000 in 2012; $11,163,000 in 2013; and $9,980,000 in 2014.
School levies are approved and presented to voters as an aggregate amount to be collected each year. More information about each of the three levies:
February 2010 Levy Information
The Issaquah School District plans to present three levy measures to voters on the February 2010 ballot: a renewal of the Maintenance and Operations Levy for basic operations of schools, a Transportation Levy to preserve the school bus depreciation schedule; and a Capital Levy to fund critical building repairs and educational technology.
While we usually run both levies and construction bonds together every four years, the School Board decided in February 2009 to forgo a bond this cycle after analyzing important factors such as the current economic climate and forecasted need for major construction projects.
Process and timeline
- February 2009: School Board authorizes the Superintendent to prepare three levy packages for its approval.
- April 2009: Superintendent convenes a community Levy Development Committee to develop the three levy packages and overall tax rate.
- May 2009: Superintendent presents his recommendation of levy packages to the School Board.
- May through June 2009: School Board sub-committee analyzes the proposed levy measures.
- June 2009: School Board authorizes final levy packages.
- June 2009 through February 2010: School District provides factual information about levy packages to community.
- February 9, 2010: Levy measures go before voters.
Resources
Levy and Bond 101
- School districts are funded from three main sources: The state, the federal government, and local levies and bonds. Washington State has not redefined its funding model for public education since 1977. Many basic needs, such as textbooks and technology to help students learn, are not fully funded. Nearly all of the state's 295 school districts must ask their local communities to cover about 20 percent of basic needs by approving local levies. These levies support instruction, smaller class sizes, school bus transportation, safety and health, and technology for student learning.
- The Maintenance and Operations Levy also covers the state's shortfall for special education, highly capable learners, English language learners, advanced placement and honors courses, extra-curricular activities such as arts and athletics, and much more.
- What is a levy? Levies are intended to cover on-going costs for the district. By asking the taxpayers to approve a levy, the district is saying that the funding from its other sources (state and federal funding) does not cover the cost of offering the quality of education that it wants to provide the community. It is asking the taxpayers to kick in additional funds to fill the gap. The state limits the term of these levies to four years, which means that the district will have to go back to the voters every few years to retain the same level of spending and standard of education.
- What is a bond? A bond is very limited in how it can be used. Specifically, it can be used to buy land or to build or renovate school facilities. These projects are understandably quite expensive and to fund them over the short term required by the other levy types would be cost prohibitive for the taxpayers. Therefore, the school district asks for approval from the taxpayers to essentially take out a loan (by issuing bonds) which the taxpayers will pay back over the life of the loan (typically 30 years).
- Can bond money be used for classroom expenses? No! Although tax payers can approve hundreds of millions of dollars to build and renovate schools, bond dollars must be used exclusively for those purposes. (For example, the Issaquah School District was able to build Liberty High School in the 1970s after voters approved a bond but had to wait a year to open the schools until voters approved a Maintenance and Operations levy to fund salaries and classroom operations).
- Property value and levies: School districts do not receive more money as property values increase. Levies are based on a fixed dollar amount, not a percentage of assessed property value. When voters approve a levy, they authorize the school district to collect a fixed dollar amount. So, as property values increase and more people share in paying that fixed amount, the combined local tax rate for schools stays about the same or often decreases.