The Centralia School Board passed a resolution on Wednesday evening to place a levy on the ballot in the April election. This is the Centralia School District’s third attempt at passing the replacement educational programs and property levy.
The school board voted to set the two-year levy at $1.50 per $1,000 in assessed property value after taking into account recommendations from the budget task force, a group of community members and school staff.
“We’re really trying to pinpoint specifically how we can hold ourselves accountable as a district for how these funds will help us increase our programs and our services to help increase the success of our students,” Centralia School District Superintendent Dr. Lisa Grant said at the Wednesday evening special board meeting.
The levy needs to be approved by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) and then submitted to Lewis County by the end of next week.
Since the levy failed twice in 2020, the school district publicized a projected shortfall in their 2020-2021 school year budget of $11.9 million — a portion of which is due to lost levy revenue. Along with other cuts, the district laid off 90 school employees this past summer to help balance the budget.
Voters denied the Centralia School District levy, which needs 50% plus one vote to pass, in February 2020 with a 69% “no” vote and then again in August of the same year with a 50.38% “no” vote.
If the levy fails in April, the district can go out in either August or November — not both. If the levy passes in April, August or November for the $1.50 asked for, the district would receive about $4.5 million in 2022 — an estimated $2.4 million to be received prior to the start of the 2022-23 school year.
If the levy passes at a rate of $1.50, the district estimates collecting a little over $1 million in Local Effort Assistance (LEA) funds in 2022 which is included in the estimated $4.5 million total. LEA funds are meant to equalize values for districts that pass a levy and have below-average property values.
More information about the Centralia School District’s next levy attempt can be found on its website at www.centralia.k12.wa.us/.
