Schools seek same local option rate

Sisters property taxpayers will pay the same rate they currently do -- 75 per $1,000 of assessed valuation -- if voters decide in November to renew the local option tax levy that has kept Sisters schools operating since voters approved it in November 2000.

The levy will run out at the end of the next school year.

The Sisters School Board agreed Monday night, August 30, to seek the same rate for the next four years instead of asking for a few cents more or less per $1,000.

As Sisters' tax base and property values grow, so has the revenue generated by local option. The tax is expected to generate more than $800,000 per year.

Those funds make up a vital part of the school district budget and school board members consider a renewal of local option absolutely critical.

Even as the board refined the measure to be placed on the November 2 ballot, they received news that enrollment has increased at all three Sisters schools as the school year is about to begin.

Sisters Elementary School has 459 enrolled; there are 303 enrolled at Sisters Middle School and 539 at Sisters High School for a district-wide total of 1,301.

That's good news on one hand; state funding is provided on a per-student basis. But it takes a lot of new students in one school to pay for a new teacher, so rising enrollment puts pressure on class sizes.

Board members noted Monday night that, while Sisters has not been able to reduce class sizes, they are far smaller than they would be without local option funding.

In other business, the board authorized Ted Thonstad to discuss with representatives of Verizon Wireless the possibility of siting a cell phone tower on school property.

Verizon approached the school district with a proposition to install a tower in place of one of the football field light poles. The tower would hold both wireless communication equipment and the football lights.

The school district could benefit from monthly lease fees from a tower.

The board made no commitment other than to find out more about the proposition.