District 6 approves elementary, high school mill levies

By JOE SOVA / Hungry Horse News

Voters will go to the polls on Tuesday, May 6 for a School District 6 and Columbia Falls High School District mill levy election.

Trustees approved an option for the amount of the mill levies during Monday's school board work session. There will two levies on the ballot — one for the elementary district and another for the high school district.

Passage of the mill levies will help alleviate a funding shortfall in District 6 for the 2008-09 school year.

If the elementary levy passes, the increase in property taxes for homeowners in the district would be $5.38 on a $100,000 home, and $10.77 on a $200,000 home. For the high school levy, the increase would be about $10 for the owner of a $100,000 home, and just under $20 for a $200,000 home. Added together, taxpayers would see an increase of about $15 on a $100,000 home, and just under $30 for a $200,000 residence if both levies pass.

Superintendent Michael Nicosia said that the most the district can have on the ballot for the elementary district is $69,608, and trustees voted to levy the full amount. Before the vote, Nicosia outlined the district's budget cut options, based on money coming in from the State for the 2008-09 year. There are $267,611 in possible cuts, including textbooks ($102,440), supplies ($33,120), a business office full-time equivalent position ($36,180), retirement incentive ($33,120) and personnel adjustments ($62,751). Even though more than $69,000 would be appropriated, it would still leave a shortfall of nearly $216,000 — meaning the district will still see substantial budget cuts.

The second of two options for the high school levy presented by Nicosia was amended before trustees voted unanimously to accept it. If the mill levy is supported by a majority of voters in the district, it will appropriate $142,000.

Trustees amended Nicosia's second high school option, adding the textbooks that would have been cut — about $42,000 — back into the equation.

The district faced high school budget cuts in personnel ($54,173), textbooks ($42,469), technology ($19,049), instructional minor equipment ($20,000), instructional major equipment ($8,000), maintenance major equipment ($10,000), athletic training supplies ($7,000) and athletic uniforms ($10,000). To eliminate all those prospective cuts, $170,395 in additional money would be needed.

Nicosia said that if the district goes with the selected high school option without passage of the levy, there would be a huge $225,313 shortfall for the next school year.

In the first option for the high school budget, the levy would have appropriated about $171,000. To ease the increase on property taxes, trustees chose Nicosia's second option.

The superintendent said that most likely taxable value of property will go up, but the increase in taxes would not come close to meeting the financial needs of District 6.

Nicosia noted that the state revenue increase for the district for the next school year is expected to be $19,968, an increase of just .37 percent over the current year.

In other school board action Monday, trustees approved a resolution that would mean District 6 would extend bus route 29 to encompass a route to West Glacier, and possibly as far as Essex. The district is currently sharing the cost of the West Glacier route, which has a total cost of about $72,366 this school year. The change, which must be approved by the district's transportation committee, would save taxpayers nearly $39,000 next year.

Also Monday, Ruder Elementary Principal Matt Fawcett and Glacier Gateway Principal Dot Wood reported on full-day kindergarten progress. They gave the first-year plan rave reviews.

More on the West Glacier bus route and full-day kindergarten is upcoming in the Hungry Horse News.