4 bond issues, levies to reappear on ballots

The four issues were defeated by voters earlier this month.
WARREN -- The Niles and Southington school districts will ask voters at the Feb. 6 special election to approve bond issues and tax levies for the construction of new schools, while Newton Township will try a second time to pass an additional police levy.
The deadline for filing for questions and issues at the Trumbull County Board of Elections for the special election was extended to 4 p.m. Monday.
Niles and Southington both lost at the polls earlier this month.
Niles voters will be asked again to approve a 6.7-mill, 28-year levy to cover the local share of the cost for building three new schools with Ohio School Facilities Commission funding. The facilities commission will pay 68 percent of the approximately 55 million cost of the project if approved by voters.
The project would provide for the construction of two elementaries and one high school where the old buildings are located.
Southington will again ask voters to approve a 9.3-mill, 28-year levy that would fund the local share of the facilities project. The project calls for a 108,000-square-foot building to house all the pupils in the district.
A district is approved for facilities commission funding when the cost of refurbishments to its schools are more than two-thirds the cost of building everything from scratch.
Other issues
Newton Township voters will be asked to approve a 2-mill additional levy for police protection, and to replace two 1-mill police levies with a 2-mill police levy. Replacements allow for additional revenue because they update millage and allow for inflation.
Newton Township voters said no to a 1.75-mill additional police levy during the May 2 primary.
In Mahoning County, the Boardman school board is again asking voters to permit it to borrow 51.6 million to fund improvements at its buildings. Voters rejected the 3.5-mill, 28-year bond issue earlier this month.
John Payne, deputy director of the Columbiana County Board of Elections, said Friday that no petitions were filed for special elections.