The Anacortes School District plans to ask voters in February to approve a four-year $27.3 million replacement maintenance and operations levy.

The levy would provide funds for areas like staff and instructional support, technology, special needs students, transportation and K-12 athletics and activities.

With recent cuts to state funding, the local levy is making up a larger portion of the district’s budget. This year, it accounts for nearly 26 percent of revenue.

The Anacortes School Board got its first look at the levy proposal at its meeting Thursday night.

The current levy runs through the 2010 calendar year. If a replacement levy is passed in February it won’t go into effect until the 2011 calendar year.

The district plans to ask voters for $6.82 million each year for 2011-2014.

Estimated millage rates are $1.39 per $1,000 of assessed property value in 2011; $1.36 in 2012; $1.33 in 2013; and $1.29 in 2014.

The cost to the owner of a $400,000 home in 2011 would be $557. The cost would likely go down over the four years.

In February 2006, the district asked voters to approve a four-year $26.5 million replacement maintenance and operations levy: $5.94 million in 2007; $6.37 million in 2008; $6.83 million in 2009; and $7.3 million in 2010.

The levy passed easily with a 70.4 percent “yes” vote.

In 2007, voters OK’d a resolution to allow school levies to pass with a simple majority (50 percent plus one) instead of the previously required super majority of 60 percent.

The local levy now makes up a larger portion of the district’s budget than it did when the district made its previous request.

Declining enrollment and reduced state funding have made the district more dependent on local funds. Leaders worry the problem could get worse.

“That’s what we’re hearing from our legislators, too,” said Kris Lytton, board president. “We’re not going to get support from the state.”

In 2007, the levy made up about 21.5 percent of the district’s revenue. It has continued to increase each year to more than 22 percent in 2008, more than 23 percent in 2009 and it is projected to make up nearly 26 percent in 2010.

“The levy is going to have to take more and more of our instructional budget,” Superintendent Chris Borgen said.

At Thursday’s meeting, district finance director Lisa Matthews reviewed levy basics.

The district can only ask voters to authorize so much levy money. The authority limit, also called a levy lid, in Anacortes is 30.5 percent of state and federal funds received the previous year. The district is grandfathered in at a higher rate than the usual 24 percent most other districts face.

The district cannot levy more than that 30.5 percent, even if voters approve more.

Matthews said that happened this year, when the district had to roll back its levy. Voters approved a levy that called for $7.3 million to be collected in 2010. But due to cuts in state and federal funds, the district will only be able to collect about $6.9 million.

In the Anacortes School District boundaries, residences make up nearly 66 percent of the taxing pie and the refineries represent nearly 15 percent.

Matthews said district residents pay a lower amount compared to other cities due in part to the refineries’ large share of the tax base.

In 2009, the owner of a $400,000 home in Anacortes paid $522.64 for current school levy.

The owner of a $300,000 home in Burlington paid $592.86.

Matthews said she compared different house values because it is more expensive to live in Anacortes.

In Mount Vernon, the owner of a $300,000 home paid $914.16.  In Sedro-Woolley the bill was $664.80.

With recent changes to state and federal funding, more of the district’s levy dollars are going to pay for basic education — something school leaders say the state is obligated to pay for but isn’t fully funding.

“It’s changing and evolving depending on what the state does,” Matthews said.

In 2005-2006, the last time the district requested a levy, nearly 52 percent of funds went to staff and instructional support, 18 percent to technology, 11 percent to special needs students, nearly 11 percent to K-12 athletics and activities and about 8 percent to transportation.

In 2009-2010, nearly 65 percent is going to staff and instructional support, 12.5 percent to technology, more than 5 percent to special needs students, 10.5 percent to K-12 athletics and activities, nearly 6 percent to transportation and just less than 1 to percent food service.

The increase in staff funding happened after the loss of state I-728 money, which paid to reduce class sizes among other things, Matthews said. The district was able to reduce levy spending on special needs students because federal funding provided some relief.

The Superintendent Advisory Committee discussed whether the district should opt for a two-year or four-year levy, Borgen said.

The plus of a two-year levy is the district could adjust future levy amounts for changes in legislative funding. The minuses are it would cost taxpayers additional funds for election costs and additional community and district staff time.

“It definitely takes away from our focus on quality instruction,” Borgen said.

A four-year levy would provide a predictable funding source for district financial planning but the district may not request approval of enough funds from taxpayers with unknown state and federal funding impacts in the later years.

When deciding on a levy amount, Borgen said the district considered declining enrollment, reduced state and federal funding, the current economic climate and impact on taxpayers and the district’s ability to provide quality instructional programs.

“We always need to be prudent in what we’re asking of our community” Borgen said.

Comment on levy request
You can comment online on the levy request at the School District’s Web site at http://www.asd103.org. A feedback option is planned for the home page.
The board will next meet to discuss and approve the levy request at 3 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 3 in the board room upstairs at Anacortes Middle School.