When Hockinson School District residents check their ballots for the Feb. 12 special election, they’ll have two levies to vote on, one a replacement and one a new levy.
The replacement school programs and operations levy is technically a “partial replacement,” Superintendent Sandra Yager said. As part of the state’s McCleary legislation — which injected $7.3 billion in new state funding for schools to be spread over four years, followed by another $1 billion in 2018 for teacher salaries — local levies were capped at $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value.
In 2018, Hockinson’s levy rate was $3.43 per $1,000 of assessed value. The district is asking for the maximum it can for the replacement three-year levy, $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed value for each year. The money is expected to go toward keeping class sizes down, helping to fund special education programs, extracurricular activities and athletics.
“We would’ve gotten almost $5 million this year (with the old levy rate),” Yager said. “Instead, we’re getting a little less than $3 million.”
The second levy is a three-year capital levy for technology and school improvements that would start in 2020. For the first year, the district is asking for $0.45 per $1,000 of assessed value, followed by $0.40 per $1,000 in 2021 and $0.36 per $1,000 in 2022. The money is expected to be used for technology refreshes, safety and security upgrades, heating and cooling improvements and building capital improvements.
“With replacement levy that the legislators approved for us to have moving forward, we would be able to maintain our current programs,” Yager said. “The only thing we wouldn’t be able to do is to continue to do the technology.”
The district has had technology levies in the past, most recently in 2016. The rate that year was $0.46 per $1,000 of assessed value, she said.
Part of the reason the district hasn’t sought funds for technology in recent years is because Hockinson passed a $39.9 million bond in February 2015 to replace Hockinson Middle School.
Yager said the district could use some money from the general fund to cover costs this year, as the district works around the lower levy amount. Vancouver Public Schools is looking to deal with an estimated $11.4 million shortfall for the 2019-2020 school year.
Hockinson is not in such a position, Yager said, adding that as long as the levies both pass, the district should be okay financially for the immediate future.
“If the levy doesn’t pass, we will have to look at what do we need to cut,” she said. “If the levy does pass, we will maintain all of our programs and be able to make payments for what we agreed to pay.”
