Jordan Independent - Operating Levy Information - Comments

Not to mention currently the

bluemoon07 — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 15:37:39 -0500

Not to mention currently the 2nd grade classes have anywhere from 28-30 kids per classroom which is way too many! If the levy doesn't pass those class sizes will increase and that is a ridiculous amount of students to have in one classroom. I know we have not received information from the district but information has been printed in the JI and that is enough for me to vote yes. I don't want my taxes to go up any more than the next person but there are more important issues at stake here, and if the state is not going to fund schools properly then what choice do schools have?

Kyle, it is my opinion that

goldengopher — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:06:40 -0500

Kyle, it is my opinion that the referendum faces a very difficult time of passing. It is being held during a presidential election year, where many people will be voting and seeing the words "voting yes will increase your taxes".

The district has not sent anything home as of yet, and with less than a month until election, they better get the word out on why they need a levy. I hope they don't rely on just the newspaper's staff on providing information. I think the timing of hiring a new superintendent, might also hurt the operating levy's chances. To jump into a new district, learn everything about it - including finance, and also try to pass an operating levy, will require a lot of work.

I'd like to see it pass, as I think the state has not kept up with funding for schools. Without it, the school will probably cut all day kindergarten, have higher class sizes, and cut programs. All of which will not be good for me with a 4 year old entering school next year.

Was I mailed anything by the

Kyle Thill — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 20:37:04 -0500

Was I mailed anything by the district with any information regarding the levy? Wasn't there a move on by the legislature to provide districts the right to impose a levy without a vote [worrisome]. In the absence of good information I'd be inclined to vote no in concerns over just how the dollars are being spent now.

Thank you Goldengopher!

gramps40 — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 16:56:02 -0500

Thank you Goldengopher! These are all great questions that voters do need answers to so they can make an informed decision. I posted a previous blog entry specifically about the fund balance because I have seen some different amounts published for that. I have included a copy of that post at the end of this comment.

This is late in the season and it has been difficult to find information on the referendum. I checked the district website, but the district news section still has articles about the superintendent retiring and the superintendent search. Hopefully the district will put information about the referendum on the site soon.

PREVIOUS POST
In the JI on September 11, an article about the school district referendum stated, "Jordan Public Schools spent $1 million more than its revenues for fiscal year 2007-2008, an audit released this week said. That was intentional."

If you go to http://jordan.k12.mn.us/dist/budget/dist_rev_budget_08-09.pdf on the school district website, a report from the Minnesota Department of Education shows the difference between revenues and expenditures for operating the schools to be $457,838 for the 2007-08 school year.

Now in the September 18 JI, the numbers show the district had revenue of $12.9 million and expenditures of $13.2 for a difference of $300,000.

What is the correct amount, $1 million, $457,838, or $300,000 that the district overspent by last school year?

A referendum in this economy will be a challenge to pass with just 47 days left until the election. There is a lot of information and explanation that needs to get out to the public.

1) What is the actual amount that the district overspent last school year?

2) What is the projected amount that the district will overspend for this school year?

3) How much was the budget cut by this school year?

4) What is the total amount of money the district would get from a successful referendum?

5) What amount of money would need to be cut from the budget next year if the referendum does not pass?

Operating Levy Information

goldengopher — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 14:05:25 -0500

The Jordan school district hasn't sent anything out on the reasons why they need to ask for an operating levy. I thought I would beat them to the punch.

What is an operating levy?
• An operating levy is a locally approved levy (or tax) that helps support student programs and services. Operating levies provide a certain amount of revenue per student. (“per pupil unit”) per year and may be authorized to up to a 10-year period.

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