Board to seek 9.5-mill levy to cover deficit

Wednesday, August 23, 2006 Officials say the district faces a state takeover if the levy fails. By HAROLD GWIN VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown City School District residents will be asked to vote in November to approve a 9.5-mill, dual-purpose tax levy to eliminate a budget deficit. Failure to approve the levy means the district likely will be forced into state "fiscal emergency," which will result in the appointment of a state-controlled oversight committee. That committee could take over operation of the district from the board of education, school officials said. The decision to put the levy on the ballot passed 5-2 Tuesday, with board members Dominic Modarelli and Kathryn Hawks Haney casting the dissenting votes. Members Shelley Murray, Jacqueline Taylor, Michael Write, Lock P. Beachum Sr. and Jamael Tito Brown voted yes. "This is not an easy decision to make," Murray said, noting that she made some promises to voters when she was elected — to hold administrators accountable to their budgets, that her children would attend Youngstown schools, and she wouldn't make any decision that would hurt children. Murray said voting against the levy would hurt schoolchildren because the state would come in and cut "for the sake of cutting," with no regard for academic programs and recent district academic improvements. Panel to look for cuts The board has indicated it wants to appoint an audit and accountability committee that would include some volunteers with financial expertise to examine the school district's finances and offer the board an opinion on whether the district has made all the cuts it can to reduce spending before going to a levy. Murray said that if the committee finds more cuts can be made, she will "lead the charge" to get the levy off the ballot. Beachum had pushed for the creation of the audit committee, saying that would be the only way he would vote for the levy at this point. Modarelli and Haney both said they feel additional cuts can be made. Modarelli said constituents have complained to him the district is too top-heavy with administrators. A 9.5-mill levy is too heavy a burden for taxpayers, he added. Haney said she could support a lower millage levy, but, with area layoffs and unemployment, the 9.5 mills is just too high. Before the vote, the board heard from Phyllis Johnson, a Coitsville Township trustee, who said a 9.5-mill levy would be "a real hardship" on many older township residents. Coitsville recently had a property value reassessment that raised real estate taxes by 35 percent to 40 percent, Johnson said. She said she understands the need for more money but is concerned about the amount the board is seeking. Write, board president, said the board isn't done looking for ways to cut spending. Dr. Wendy Webb, superintendent, said the administration has been devising cost-cutting plans since the district learned of an impending deficit in January. "We can't cut anymore [without affecting academics]," she told the board, adding that 21 of the staff cuts have been administrators. Treasurer Carolyn Funk said the district has been steadily trimming spending. Time is short She and Webb handed the board a report Tuesday showing an additional $534,000 in cuts this year that will grow to about $4.8 million in cuts over the next five years as some school buildings close and staff is reduced. That brings the total in proposed spending cuts to more than $35 million a year within about five years. Beachum said he wants the audit and accountability committee to be up and running quickly so it can study district finances and make a report by the beginning of October, before the November election ballots are printed. That doesn't leave much time. A policy to direct the committee's effort must be drafted and approved and the committee appointed before it can begin its work. Those tasks likely won't be completed before the Sept. 12 board meeting. The 9.5-mill levy would be a five-year tax increase generating about $4.1 million in additional annual revenue. Funk estimated the budget deficit will be eliminated in 2009-10 if the levy passes. The district faces a $9 million deficit this year even if the levy passes. The red ink would drop to $6.4 million next year and $1.7 million the year after, Funk said. The tax will cost a taxpayer with a home valued at $20,000 an additional $55 a year. Someone with a house worth $60,000 will pay $165 more annually. The additional tax on a $100,000 house would be $274 a year.