Lakeland voters to decide two levies March 14

Voters in the Lakeland Joint School District will be asked to vote March 14 on two school funding measures.

“We are asking this great community to go to the polls and make decisions on two levies,” Lakeland Superintendent Lisa Arnold said in an informational video on the district’s website, lakeland272.org. “We are not asking for this to be a permanent levy.”

The district will ask voters to approve a two-year supplemental levy for $9.52 million per year. This levy will replace the present levy, which was approved by voters in 2021 and expires June 30. Funds from this levy cover maintenance and operations items needed beyond what the district receives through state funding such as safety and security needs, extracurricular activities, transportation and curriculum. Nearly two-thirds of the funds cover staff wages.

The supplemental levy would fill the gap between what the state pays for staff compensations and what the district actually pays, Arnold said.

The supplemental levy requires a simple majority, one more than 50%, to pass. If approved, it would take effect July 1. The cost to taxpayers is expected to remain the same as the current levy. Property owners with homes valued at $400,000 would pay $424.81 per year for the supplemental levy.

The second measure on the ballot will be a six-year school plant facilities levy for $1.146 million per year. The most recent plant facility levy, of the same amount, expired at the end of the 2021-22 school year. Funds from this levy cover facility costs — maintenance or purchases of buildings and vehicles. No salaries can come from plant facility dollars. This levy request requires a 55% majority to pass. The cost to property owners with a home valued at $400,000 would be $51.14 annually for this levy.

If local districts cover the cost of curriculum through a levy instead of drawing the funds from the state, it would allow the district’s board of trustees to have more control over what’s taught. If the state pays for curriculum, the state also decides curriculum, Arnold said.

“The fact that the levy provides the dollars for this curriculum allows our taxpayers to have a voice in the tools that our classroom teachers use when they’re instructing,” Arnold said.

Early voting will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. beginning Feb. 27 at the Kootenai County Elections Department, 1808 N. Third St., Coeur d’Alene.

Residents in the Lakeland School District must register to vote by Feb. 17 in order to vote on the levies. Absentee ballots must be requested by 5 p.m. March 3.

Community members are invited to bring questions and concerns about the levy elections to Lakeland School District officials during an informational meeting that will be held at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Lakeland Senior High School, 7006 Highway 53, Rathdrum.