MEADOW HEIGHTS: VOTERS WILL DECIDE FATE OF TAX PROPOSAL

PATTON -- The Meadow Heights School District is asking voters to approve a tax hike or face budget cuts, including school programs and athletic teams.

On April 7, voters will be asked to raise the tax rate 98 cents. If the measure fails, school programs totaling $113,000 will be cut, said Superintendent Tom Waller. The increase would generate an estimated $95,000.

Waller said the tax hike could be a first for the district. He said he has checked the school's records and cannot find any mention of when the district's tax rate was set or any adjustments made by voters. Voters did approve a tax increase for debt service in 1985 when a new elementary school was built.

Waller explained that the financial crunch is due to state budget cuts this year.

Meadow Heights stands to lose $100,000 to $115,000 this year because of an 8.3 percent cut in state funding. Meadow Heights has about 550 students and a budget of $1.85 million.

"When these cuts came down, we had people already under contract, and decided to absorb the loss," Waller said. "We didn't feel we could absorb that again."

The district made two plans: one, to ask voters for more money; the other, a plan to make budget cuts if necessary.

"We formed a program reduction committee made up of community people," he said. The group last week laid a plan for what will be cut if the tax increase fails. The cuts total $113,000.

The recommended cuts are:

Full-day kindergarten would be cut to half-day.

Eliminate vocational agriculture.

Eliminate elementary, junior high and high school art. "That reduces our fine art offering to just one music," Waller said.

Eliminate elementary and junior high school physical education.

Eliminate assistant coaches for volleyball and basketball.

Eliminate girls softball and boys baseball.

Cut a full-time bus mechanic to half-time.

Eliminate summer employment of janitorial help.

Eliminate one full-time secretarial position from the central office.

Cut extended contracts for the librarian and home economics teacher to work a week before school starts and a week after school ends.

If voters approve the tax increase, all the programs affecting students will be maintained.

"Even if we pass the tax levy, we will have to make some cuts," Waller said. He said the district would cut about $15,000.

He said the secretarial position will be eliminated. "And we would probably still look at some assistant coaches and still look at the summer employment of nighttime janitors."

If the entire list of cuts was made, Waller said, the school district's state classification could be in jeopardy. "The smaller you get, the less things you can cut without getting into the meat of your program," he said.

"We're a AA school," he said. "We just finished our state school improvement plan and most of our improvement areas in facilities, not related to instruction. We would be taking a step backwards if we have to make these cuts, and in a couple year's time run the chance of going unclassified."

Waller explained that students attending an unclassified high school must take the GED exam to graduate. Also, students could choose to attend another district. State funding would follow the students to other schools.

"It would really be disastrous for a school district to be unclassified."

He said state education officials have no plans to relax standards because of financial constraints.

"We need to help ourselves," he said.

Meadow Heights has the lowest possible tax levy. In fact, the Board of Education has raised the levy to $1.25 for the past five years.

The levy currently stands at $1.97. That rate is rolled back 91 cents because of Proposition C, making the levy $1.06.

But to qualify for state funds, a district must levy a tax of at least $1.25. The Board of Education is authorized to raise the rate to $1.25 without voter approval.

Taxpayers now pay a total school tax bill of $2.03 per $100 assessed valuation. The district levies 78 cents toward retirement of the debt on the elementary school.

Waller said the district plans to reduce the debt service charge from 78 cents to 49 cents. He said the debt can still be paid in five years at the lower rate.

If the increase is approved and changes made, Waller said the new rate would be $2.52 for five years. After five years, the debt will be paid off and the rate would drop to $2.04.

"It is a complicated matter," Waller said. "We talk about 98 cents, but people don't understand what's actually coming out of their pocket is 49 cents."

He said the tax increase does not increase salaries of school employees. "Our salaries are frozen," Waller said.

A new committee of community leaders has been formed to help promote the tax hike and educate voters on the issue. The group meets for the first time next week.

"We're not asking the voters to give us anything new or unique," Waller said. "We're trying to maintain what we have until the state provides some relief."

Waller said he hopes state funding of education will change by the 1993-94 school year.

"There are several lawsuits which we are involved in," he said. "We believe if we raise our local effort now to keep us going, when the state relief comes in, we'll be in good position."