Lakeland school levy passes

RATHDRUM - Not even close.

Lakeland Joint School District voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly passed a two-year supplemental levy of $4.795 million per year for two years.

Sixty-nine percent of the voters (869) said "yes" and 31 percent (384) said "no" to the proposal. A simple majority vote (50 percent, plus one) was needed for the proposal to pass.

Tom Taggart, the district's finance director, said school officials were fairly confident the levy would pass since it's a reduction of $155,000 per year (3.1 percent) from the current levy.

"We felt pretty comfortable because it had been quiet and there were not a lot of calls inquiring about it," Taggart said. "We think that turning around the amount was a good message and that people responded to that. If we would have increased it, it would have brought out more 'no' voters."

Taggart never felt that the proposal would be a slam dunk, however, because the levy two years narrowly passed at 53 percent.

"We pushed voters to the limit with the last one, but they still came through for us so it's nice that we can start going in the other direction (with the amount)," he said. "Last time it took us by surprise at how close it was. I think that teachers were feeling beat up with the Students Come First (education reform package) two years ago and there's a more positive feeling in schools now."

With the approval of the levy, the owner of a $200,000 home will pay an additional $275.23 per year ($22.94 per month) in property taxes. That's a reduction of $11.72 per year from the current levy.

The proposal drew 1,239 voters in Kootenai County - about 10 percent of the 12,910 registered voters in the Lakeland district. In Bonner County, 14 (18 percent) of the 79 registered voters in the district went to the polls.

Taggart said if the levy would have failed, the district would have had to cut 20 percent of its General Fund budget. Those cuts would have included staff and programs.

The district would have likely floated a lower proposal in May or August as a final attempt to generate funds.

Taggart said the district lowered the levy amount because more funding from the state appears to be available than in recent years.

"We won't get nearly what we did back before budget cuts started, but it's a positive start," he said.

Lakeland has also been hurt funding-wise with declining enrollment in recent years. As the student population drops, so does funding from the state.