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CORTLAND -- An emergency additional 4.9-mill tax levy for the Lakeview Local School District fell short of approval during Tuesday's election.
The levy received 47% approval, while 53% voted against it, according to unofficial results from the Trumbull County Board of Elections.
School district Superintendent Velina Jo Taylor said she was "working through the seven stages of grief," Wednesday.
"The r-appraisal of properties has put everyone on edge about the amount of money coming in," she said. "The biggest downfall was the people not figuring out how much money it would cost them. The reappraisal happened two to three weeks before the voting, so there was no way of knowing about their taxes. We didn't have a chance, I don't blame anyone in the community. It was a matter of bad timing."
Treasurer Sean Miller said last week money from the levy would go toward curriculum costs and teacher salaries, as the district falls within the bottom 25% for teacher salaries in Trumbull County.
"It's critical to keep Lakeview achieving academically," Miller said. "Without the levy, we'd have to make more cuts. But when reevaluation goes through for next year, the levy's millage will go down."
Miller predicted the levy would go down to about 4.1 mills following reevaluation.
Taylor made the same prediction Wednesday.
"It probably would have come in at 4- to 4.1-mills, even if it was voted 'yes,'" she said, adding the district has no choice but to put the levy back on the next ballot.
"We're looking into going into (the) red in about four to five years, based on our previous five-year forecast. We'll be looking at other funding opportunities, but more than likely, there will need to be another levy," she said.
She said the district will analyze the impact of regular income tax and earned income tax, as alternatives, to avoid imposing a property tax.
"We'll need to redo our five-year forecast. Once that's done, we will need to see the changes needed to get our budget in the sweet spot, or in the black," Taylor said.
The levy was to raise approximately $1.5 million per year, and would cost the owner of a $100,000 home $171.48 per year. The money would have been used to fund the operations of the district, Miller said.
"We haven't received any additional operating money for 12 years," he said. "With the rising cost of everything, we need an influx of new money."
Increasing expenditures from unfunded state mandates have strained the budget, Miller said previously. In addition, he said an increase in students leaving the district caused additional loss of funds.
Trumbull County Auditor Martha Yoder said Wednesday, "even when it was initially certified, we knew the values would have changed." She added, "we're finishing a 6-year reevaluation process with the levy based on the value of the tax district. Had it passed, it would have raised more money anyway. And the singular properties that have been evaluated won't be certified until closer to the end of the year."