The board voted unanimously to approve the measure, the first of two resolutions it’s required to sign off on before a levy can be placed on the November ballot. A second vote is slated to occur during a special meeting Aug. 1, Wesney said.
The deadline to place the measure on the ballot is Aug. 7, said Centerville Treasurer Laura Sauber.
The vote comes after weeks of discussion about district finances at board meetings, as well as input from staff and community members via two community forums and four community engagement events. Two other such events remain, one at 6 p.m. Wednesday: at Green Park Shelter, 6661 Green Park Dr., and the other at 8 a.m. Thursday: at Winans Coffee & Chocolate, 4425 Feedwire Road.
Centerville/Washington Twp. voters last approved a levy for additional funding for the school district in November 2019.
“School districts need money to maintain operations,” Wesney said Monday. “Voted levies are the main source of funding for most school districts in the state of Ohio. Because the way schools are funded in Ohio, the need for additional revenue just doesn’t go away. We receive relatively flat funding from the state.”
Centerville-Washington Twp. voters in November 2023 rejected a permanent 5.9-mill additional tax levy that would have raised $12.9 million per year, with 5.4 mills going to pay for day-to-day operating expenses for the district, and 0.5 mills going to permanent improvements.
Then, this past March, voters rejected a request for a 3.9-mill operating levy that would have raised $11.2 million per year.
After the two levy rejections, the district implemented several cost-saving measures, including a reduction in force that has included 48 positions, most of them via retirements or resignations.
District officials said at a recent meeting that the sooner Centerville City Schools can secure funding, the sooner it can better prepare for and look at long-term, future initiatives.
During public comments at Monday night’s meeting, Centerville and Washington Twp. residents spoke in favor of putting a levy on the ballot and supporting it. Although levy efforts have seen opposition at past meetings, no one spoke against it Monday.
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