(PHOTO BY JESSE DAVIS / THE VILLAGE REPORTER)
DISTRICT DOLLARS DENIED … The Pike-Delta-York Local School District Board of Education will be forced to make tough decisions after its 5.31-mill replacement levy was defeated in general election voting, according to Superintendent Jon Burke.
By: Jesse Davis
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
jesse@thevillagereporter.com
More cuts, delayed upgrades and repairs, and an inability to replace some retiring staff are coming to the Pike-Delta-York Local School District after the district’s replacement levy failed to pass for a third time in the general election.
Superintendent Jon Burke said the district already absorbed an administrator and teacher and will be absorbing a bus driver over Christmas break due to the previous defeats, and the fresh defeat will result in new measures.
“I’m disappointed that the substitute levy failed,” Burke said. “This levy was boiled down between our school district thriving versus surviving.”
“The combination of the income tax and the substitute levy were working together to build a cash balance to complete facility upgrades and repairs that have been put off because of a lack of funding.”
“The failure of the levy will force the district to use financing options to complete much needed facility upgrades which will end up costing the district and taxpayers more money in the long run.”
The 5.31-mill levy – which makes up roughly 20 percent of the district’s budget – was shot down by a vote of 1,709 for to 2,294 against after being defeated 987 to 1,743 in November of 2023 and again by 808 to 940 in March.
Burke said residents don’t want to pay more taxes than they absolutely have to, which he understands.
“However, we get what we pay for,” he said. “We’ve had the top performing school in the county with a tax revenue that’s lower than our neighbors.”
“We’ve started putting money into maintenance and now that will have to tighten back up. Putting off short term repairs means we’ll end up paying for more expensive repairs down the road. It’s just like home maintenance. If you don’t fix little issues, they become bigger issues.”
He also said he believes some residents may incorrectly believe the school district is receiving millions in funding from the industry west of town, which he said is “just not true.”
The failed levy was a replacement for a past levy and did not increase the amount they were requesting from taxpayers.
“In the next 3 years, we’ll have a high number of retirements. Each and every retirement is closely analyzed to see if it needs to be replaced or if those job responsibilities can be distributed, which makes already stretched personnel more stressed.”
“There will be cuts that will be made. We will have some tough decisions to make as we plan for next school year,” Burke said. Burke said district staff is also disappointed with the result.
“The staff feels as though failing a levy is a reflection of the job performance they are doing. These levy cycles are hard on all of us and it’s fatiguing our staff and our community. We wouldn’t put a levy on the ballot if it wasn’t needed,” he said.
The board is going to discuss the district’s five-year forecast at the next regular board meeting, scheduled for November 20 in the Delta High School auditorium.
“[The] majority of our community do not have kids in the district so we’ll do what we can to push out information about changes that will take place. Ultimately, we can only do what our community will support,” Burke said.