EVANSVILLE — The Evansville Community School District will see another referendum on a ballot this year, this time on Nov. 5.
The school board unanimously approved putting a question on the ballot for $2.9 million annually for three years in a special meeting on Monday. The district last went to referendum in April. The district has made $2.1 million in cuts already and is facing a $175,000 deficit entering the 2024-25 school year.
The April referendum asked for $2.7 million in 2024-25, $3.9 million in 2025-26, $4.6 million in 2026-27, $5.2 million in 2027-28 and $5.9 million in 2028-29. The April referendum failed 51%-49%.
The current tax rate in the district is 7.69, or a $1,538 bill on a $200,000 house. If the November referendum is approved, the rate will go up to 8.70, or $1,740 on a $200,000 house.
Superintendent Nate Perry said this would be the time to get a referendum approved because if one isn’t approved in November, then it would bring the mill rate down to $5.86. An operating referendum in the district approved in 2018 just expired in June.
“What we see in the area are school districts have dropped to that range, taxpayers get comfortable with that range,” Perry said. “Obviously no one likes to pay the taxes. We hope that they would because the revenue comes into the school district. But once it drops into that range it’s very hard to get taxpayers to raise that even to a state average.”
Perry also said it would be the first time in over a decade an operating referendum hasn’t been on tax bills in the district.
There was also an option on the table to go with $3.7 million annually, but board members shared concern about the referendum not passing at all.
“If the 2.7 doesn’t pass at least we can say we went with the lowest and we were fiduciary responsible with what the public supports. the numbers support that,” Board President Mitch Larson said.
The district commissioned the Donovan Group, an organization that specializes in marketing and communications for public schools, to oversee a survey “focused on explaining the school district’s financial needs and possible solutions to address those needs for a potential ballot question” in November. Donovan worked with the district and Baird, the district’s financial consulting firm in the creation of the survey. People could respond to the survey between July 19 and July 31.
Of the 840 who responded to the survey, just under 70% said they’d either definitely or probably support the $2.9 million figure for three years, according to weighted results released by the school district. That is compared to just under 54% for the $3.7 million figure, according to the district.
Perry told the board that the additional dollars would go toward restoring positions cut after the failed referendum. Administration as a whole wants to address heating, ventilation and cooling concerns at the high school, Theodore Robinson Intermediate School and Levi Leonard Elementary School.
“I would say with either approach, there has to be an allocation to buildings and grounds. I mean it could be larger than HVAC. I mean if we have a roof repair roof replacement, that could be a couple hundred thousand but hvac is the largest concern. The techs are out here pretty frequently,” Business Manager Tom Parsons said.
Board Clerk Crystal Alling voted for the referendum, but said she wanted to think about what nonrecurring means and what it could mean in the future.
“There were some hard feelings when the last nonrecurring referendum was expired. There were positions eliminated because they were paid for by that. So if we restore cut positions does that mean they are the first to go if we’re back in this spot in three years?” Alling said.
Perry said Donovan and Baird advised against a recurring referendum, which if approved, would raise the revenue limit in perpetuity.
The board approved the referendum question unanimously.
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