MLSD looks at 2022 levy, fall board races

MOSES LAKE — Voters in the Moses Lake School District will vote this year on a new local school funding levy and two school board seats.

District Chief Operations Officer Joe Connolly said Thursday in an online meeting the Moses Lake School Board the district is planning to run a three-year enrichment levy for 2022-2024 at the current level of $1.50 per $1,000 in assessed property value.

Money raised from the levy will fund programs not covered by state and federal funding, such as athletics, music, technology, transportation and hiring personnel not fully covered by state funding, such as nurses, counselors and school resource officers.

As the COVID-19 pandemic subsides, Connolly told board members “all these items will be more important than ever.”

The current levy, approved in April 2018, runs out at the end of 2021, and is expected to raise roughly $6.9 million in 2021, according to data from the Grant County Assessor’s office.

According to data from the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), the MLSD’s budget for the 2020-21 school year is $123.7 million, including a reserve of $12.3 million.

However, Connolly said, under the change made to state school funding in 2017 as a result of the Washington State Supreme Court’s McCleary Decision, school districts must now get OSPI approval for any local levies.

Connolly and Superintendent Josh Meek said the hope is to have a levy resolution before the school board in early April to put the levy measure on the ballot for the Aug. 3 primary election.

“You cannot pass the resolution until you get OSPI approval, so we’ll bring it to you after that,” Meek said.

In addition to the levy, MLSD voters can reshape the school board. The board seats held by Vickey Melcher and Elliott Goodrich, both elected in November 2017, are up this year.

In an email to the Columbia Basin Herald after the meeting, Melcher said she intends to seek a second four-year term on the school board.

“I am proud of our board and the efforts/accomplishments we have made,” she wrote. “I realize that there is more work ahead and I know that I can help with that work. Understanding that, I have decided to continue to serve our great community and seek re-election for another term.”

Goodrich said he will not be seeking a second term, and encouraged anyone who is interested in running for his seat to contact him to get more information on what it means to be on the school board.

The filing deadline in running for either seat is 5 p.m. May 21. For more information, contact the MLSD at 509-766-2650 or the Grant County Auditor’s office at 509-754-2011 x2704.

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached at cfeatherstone@columbiabasinherald.com.