Nothing supplemental about it

Once upon a time, a supplemental levy meant just that: Taxpayers were asked to toss a few extra coins into a school district's bucket to enhance what the district was offering.

Not any more.

On March 12, voters in Coeur d'Alene School District are being asked to commit more than $27 million over the next two years to a "supplemental" levy that actually is far more lifeblood than enhancement. We strongly encourage a "yes" vote on the request.

To the average homeowner in the district, the cost is significant. Owner of a $200,000 home will pay about $250 for the first year of the levy and about $220 the second year. The difference is that the first year includes $1.4 million in one-time capital expense for stronger security and safety in all 17 district schools.

To deny the district these important funds would be to cut deeply into the quality of education for more than 10,000 local students. Not only would hundreds of jobs be lost, but one of the state's highest-performing districts - at the top of all large districts in Idaho Standards Achievement Testing, near the top in graduation rates and among the very best in other student growth assessments that compare our kids to others statewide and nationally - would take a huge step backward.

Supplemental levies have become increasingly necessary because state funding has decreased even while many districts like Coeur d'Alene have grown. Today, a full 22 percent of Coeur d'Alene District's budget is provided by this supplemental levy, which voters have approved every two-year cycle since 1987. Thankfully, they continue to recognize that it is critical to maintaining the quality of education they demand for their children, their grandchildren and their neighbors' children.

We understand that the alleged recovery from a devastating recession has not made its way into many North Idaho households. For those who might be making a little more today than they were a couple years ago, the last time the levy was approved, the excess has been gobbled up by significantly higher living costs. But we also know that few family budgets could deal with a 22 percent slash. And we're far from alone in that assessment.

The district's trustees, comprised of five self-described fiscal conservatives, are all on board with this proposal. Board chair Tom Hamilton and the rest of the trustees have analyzed the numbers, along with highly competent Chief Operating Officer Wendell Wardell and Superintendent Hazel Bauman, and all arrived at the same emphatic conclusion: Every bit of the request is warranted.

Please join us in doing our part as conscientious citizens to provide the best education we can for the children of Coeur d'Alene School District. Vote "yes" on March 12.