Quincy voters to decide fate of school M&O levy

QUINCY - Quincy School District voters will receive ballots this week for a special election that will decide the fate of a four-year maintenance and operations levy.

District officials will be asking for $7,742,599 the first year (collected in 2016), $7,974,877 the second year, $8,214,123 the third year and $8,460,547 the fourth year.

If approved, the levy would replace one approved by voters in 2011. Quincy superintendent John Boyd said the committee that worked on the levy proposal recommended a four-year levy to provide continuity in funding.

If the levy is approved property owners would pay an estimated $3.05 per $1,000 of assessed property value in the first year. The assessment would be $2.91 per $1,000 of property value in the second year, and $2.77 per $1,000 of assessed value in the second year. The assessment for the fourth year was estimated at $2.65 per $1,000 assessed property value.

The levy accounts for about 22.7 percent of the district's budget, Boyd said.

If approved, the levy proposal would increase about three percent each year in the last three years, Boyd said. It's unusual for the property assessment to drop while the levy amount rises, and district officials said it's the result of what they called a "dramatic" increase in property valuation in the Quincy School District. Property values are expected to increase by about $1.3 billion.

The levy proposal is based on a projection of an eight percent increase in property valuation district-wide. Boyd said the property value projection is based on construction already underway in the district.

The levy committee, Quincy School Board and district officials worked to keep levy rates low because Quincy voters might be asked for a construction bond in the next few years, Boyd said. Enrollment grew by an estimated 168 students, he said, although district officials aren't sure if it's a one-year phenomenon or if that kind of growth is a long-term trend. Either way, district officials are working on a facilities survey during the 2014-15 school year, he said. The survey will look at existing facilities and identify what might be needed to accommodate students in the next few years.

The increase in property values does have a downside, because the district probably will lose its levy equalization, possibly as early as the 2014-15 school year, Boyd said. Levy equalization money is paid by the state to district with property values lower than the state average.

The district is required to spend more of its own money to keep funding at the same level, but increasing property values allows district officials to do that without raising the levy assessment, he said.

The levy money is used to pay for things the state can't or doesn't pay for, including compensation for teachers, Boyd said. "Generally we pay more than what the state allocates," to stay competitive with bigger districts, he said.

Levy money is used to help pay for additional courses at the secondary level and to provide support for freshmen, to ensure they are on track for graduation, he said.

The district's entire extracurricular program, including field trips and all school sports, is paid for through locally-generated levy money.

Ballots must be postmarked no later than Feb. 10 to be counted.