|
Sanilac County voters reject SISD ballot
issues
by Josh Fahlsing, The Huron Daily Tribune, September 4,
2002
For more articles on disabilities and special ed visit
www.bridges4kids.org.
Sanilac County voters rejected the opportunity Monday to
approve three ballot issues that could have annually added
$549,273 to the coffers of the Sanilac Intermediate School
District.
The SISD has been operating with millages that were approved
by Sanilac voters in the early 1970s. In 1979, the Headlee
Amendment to the Michigan Constitution limited the revenue
from taxing units to the rate of inflation or five percent,
whichever was lower. A state formula, based on a number of
economic conditions, reduces school districts' millage rates
each year.
Currently, the SISD is levying a total millage rate of 2.656.
That number is a combination of the general fund millage
(.2108 mills), the special education fund millage (.7587
mills), and the career-technical preparation fund millage
(1.6865 mills). For legal purposes, because each millage rate
was originally voted in as a separate issue, the three rates
must be voted on separately, and appeared as three distinct
issues on Monday's ballot.
The career-technical preparation fund millage was defeated
4,586 no votes to 888 yes votes, the special education fund
millage went down 4,502 no votes to 962 yes votes, and the
general fund millage fizzled at 4,597 no votes to 870 yes
votes.
The originally voted millage rate is 3.15 mills, a combination
of .25 mills for the general fund, .9 mills for the special
education fund, and 2 mills for the career-technical
preparation fund.
Michigan law allows a district to obtain voter approval for
restoration of the full tax rate the district was allowed to
levy prior to the Headlee reduction.
This was the SISD's hope for Monday's vote. SISD
Superintendent Dr. Tony Parker said last week that the
override would have allowed the SISD and Sanilac County school
districts to keep up with current program costs.
Parker said the SISD is currently "dead last" in the state in
total revenue generated per student through the millage for
special education funds, and 46th out of 57 ISDs statewide in
total millage funding.
"It was a devastating defeat," Parker said. "It's very
humbling. We equate the defeat to not getting proper
information out to the voters, a real bad economy at this
point in time, and the hundreds of people who have been laid
off in Sanilac County. All of these just add up to a real
stunning defeat."
If all three millages had passed, the restored millage rates
would have generated $549,273 for the SISD. Parker said the
increased funding would have allowed the SISD to enhance its
programs instead of continue to gradually cut back as it has
in the past.
The SISD is allowed under law to ask voters to approve the
restoration again at a later date, but Parker said that is
unlikely at this point.
"We can definitely ask for it again but we aren't
contemplating that at this time," he said. "It was a real
terrible defeat. I said before the election that if it didn't
pass we weren't going to make any drastic cuts. We'll continue
gradually scaling back as time goes on."
|
