Tax cut Measure 47 may slam Sisters schools

Sisters school officials are trying the understand the full impact of the passage of Ballot Measure 47, the "cut and cap" measure which will reduce property tax revenues by at least 10 percent and limit tax rate increases in the future to 3 percent a year -- half the current allowance.

The measure, which rolls back school tax revenue to 90 percent of the 1995-96 fiscal year, means a reduction in tax revenue to the Sisters School District in excess of $600,000.

This loss is expected to be reduced by state school subsidies to a net loss of about $350,000, according to Sisters School Board President Bill Reed.

"But this is $350,000 we don't have," he said.

He said the district already has lost a teacher and some teacher's aids. "And, because of the cuts imposed by Measure 5 (in force since 1990) we have already let important school maintenance slip in order to keep the teacher-to-student ratio low."

The school district cannot get bond issues passed to cover school operations without losing a similar amount in state subsidies, according to Reed. He said there is no way to increase "net dollars" with tax revenues.

The only remaining resource for the school, he indicated, is the Sisters Schools Foundation. The foundation was formed this year to raise money to help fund classes and school activities such as drama, art and some athletic activities.

Superintendent Steve Swisher said earlier that the most obvious solution to covering the $350,000 loss would be to reduce the teaching staff. That would alter the teacher-to-student ratio considerably, Swisher said.

The school district is also wrestling with an overcrowding situation that presently seems to have no long-term solutions. District voters have turned down bond issues to finance the construction of additional facilities, including classrooms.

Student increases this year necessitated renting additional classrooms off campus at the Baptist church near the middle/high School.

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Jim Cornelius, Editor in Chief

Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.

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