ACGC voters reject levy for the fourth time in past 3 years

GROVE CITY -- For the fourth time in the past three years -- and for the second time in 2007 -- voters in the Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City School District have turned back a request to in-crease the operating levy.

Unofficial results from Tuesday's election show the levy proposal failed by 23 votes, with 1,059 "no" votes and 1,036 "yes" votes.

The proposal on the ballot called for revoking the existing $650 operating levy and replacing it with a new $1,075 levy, for a net difference of $425 per pupil.

The question passed in two of the three communities in the district, but Atwater area voters rejected it, leading to the district-wide failure.

The levy passed in Grove City, 253-245.

It passed in Cosmos, 278-180. The levy failed in Atwater, 505 in favor and 634 against.

The levy was being sought to generate new revenue for the financially struggling district, which has made more than $1 million in budget cuts and is currently in statutory operating debt.

"I'm extremely disappointed," said Dr. Keith Redfield, interim ACGC superintendent.

For ACGC "to survive, they need to have their school be competitive in what it offers kids," Redfield said. "It's going to be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the school board to do that with the funding now available."

Redfield said the board has "no option" but to continue to operate the district with the "bare minimum programs that are in place right now." He said the district should be able to get out of statutory operating debt by June of 2008. To be in statutory operating debt means the amount of money the district has in its net unreserved general fund is not enough to meet state financial standards.

However, the district "won't have the resources to add back programs that are necessary to provide a well-rounded education for their students," Redfield said.

ACGC Chairwoman Judy Raske said the failed levy means some "tough decisions" for the school board and the district as they continue to "keep moving" forward. "We'll do the best we can with what we have for our kids," Raske said. "It's a long road."

Redfield said he doesn't understand why the community "doesn't give more credit to their school board members and those who are trying to run the school for their kids."

"I'm disappointed for the district and disappointed for the kids," said Redfield. "They're the ones that are going to suffer in the long run."

The seven-year levy would have generated $449,427 in revenue annually. The revenue would have helped to maintain basic education programs, Redfield said.

For the average ACGC resident who has a home valued at $90,000, the tax impact of the new levy would have been $10 a month, or $120 a year.

For agricultural property, the new levy would have applied only to the house, garage and one acre of property. Under state law, other farmland and buildings would not be subject to the new levy. Also, seasonal residential property would not have been taxed on the new levy.

The school board will meet at 7 a.m. Thursday to canvass the votes.

The first time ACGC voters defeated a levy was in 2002. In 2003 the current $650 excess levy was approved. That levy is set to expire in 2010. Levy proposals were defeated in 2005, 2006 and now have been defeated twice in 2007.