Indian Lake School Officials held a levy information meeting for residents Monday.
The Indian Lake School Board put an emergency levy on the November ballot. The 7.35 mill levy is expected to generate $2.75 million. The levy is on the ballot because the district has seen a $1.2 million decrease in state revenue since 2010, including the 2013 fiscal year. District costs have increased significantly since 2004:
Fuel $123,000
Electricity/natural gas $154,000
Insurance $719,000
Maintenance $48,000
Transportation $254,000
Special education/gifted requirements/unfunded mandates $52,000
The district is projected to be operating in the red within the next two years if no additional money is generated.
The proposed levy would cost a $100,000 household $225.09 per year.
The increased millage would take affect on January 1, 2013.
There is currently a levy in place that will expire on January 1, 2015. That levy costs a $100,000 household $171.50 annually. This means that for the first two years that the emergency levy is in place, a $100,000 household would pay $396.59 annually.
After the first 2 years for the emergency levy, a $100,000 home would only pay $53.59 more annually than what is currently paid.
The district has made $1.6 million in reductions to control costs since 2009. The district has cut 9 general education teachers, 4 reading specialists, 2 intervention specialists, 3 educational assistants, 2 custodians, 1 librarian, 1 parent liaison, 1 work study teacher, 1/2 special education coordinator, and 64 supplemental contracts. The district has cut all its building budgets in half and salaries and benefits have been frozen or reduced.
Superintendent Pat O’Donnell discusses the levy and cuts.
