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Lebanon school board votes to put levy on ballot

Lebanon School District Superintendent Mark North (left), Treasurer Randy Bertram and board Vice President Donna Davis Norris watch election results with other supporters on Tuesday night, March 5, 2008.

Linda Weisenborn Lebanon School District Superintendent Mark North (left), Treasurer Randy Bertram and board Vice President Donna Davis Norris watch election results with other supporters on Tuesday night, March 5, 2008.

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By Richard Wilson, Staff Writer Updated 7:03 PM Friday, July 30, 2010

LEBANON — Voters in Lebanon City School District will be asked in November to renew a three-year operating levy that school officials say is vital for the district.

School board members voted unanimously during a special meeting Thursday, July 29, on the final step to place the 5.41-mill levy on the Nov. 2 ballot. If voters approve the levy, it would cost the owner of a $100,000 home about $165 a year, as certified by Warren County Auditor Nick Nelson.

The levy is a “vital lifeline” for the operations of the district, said Superintendent Mark North.

Board President Donna Davis-Norris said the board has discussed the issue at great length and has exhausted the options.

“There just aren’t any alternatives right now with the way school funding is,” she said. “The decision was not made lightly.”

North told board members that the district will need to return to the ballot in May 2011.

Even with passage of the renewal levy, the district still faces a deficit of about $2 million in 2012, according to the five-year financial forecast completed in May.

Treasurer Eric Sotzing said current projections do not include anticipated cost reductions or losses in tax revenue of about $230,000, after Duke Energy property will be devalued.

The need for the additional levy has arisen after revenue losses from the state, the local tax base, and further cuts in state funding that are expected, as state lawmakers deal with a multi-billion dollar deficit.

In other news, school board members approved a contract with the Lebanon City School Employees Association.

LCSEA represents 74 bus drivers, three mechanics, and nine special education attendants who work for the district. Similar to agreements negotiated with teachers and classified personnel, the LCSEA contract features a zero percent increase to base salaries, but employees will still see raises based on a schedule of step increases.

A first-year school bus driver in Lebanon makes $16.79 per hour; step increases are given every year to employees until they top out in the 25th year. The amounts vary, but on average the employees receive 1.2 percent increases each year, Sotzing said.

The board also approved a lease-purchase agreement with First Student School Bus Transportation Services for the buses used by the district.

The district will borrow a little more than $1.4 million from Huntington National Bank to lease-purchase the fleet of 70 buses, Sotzing said. The loan terms are for five years at a fixed rate of 2.57 percent interest. The move will save the district $500,000 the first year, then as about seven buses are replaced each year, savings will be about $200,000, Sotzing said.

The board has tentatively scheduled another special meeting on Thursday, Aug. 5, to approve new employees.

Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4542 or rwilson@coxohio.com.

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