Rosalia School District proposes two levies

ROSALIA— On this year’s special election ballot, the Rosalia School District No. 320 Board of Directors proposed two levies: a Replacement Educational Programs and Operation (EP&O) levy and a Replacement Capital levy for technology, safety and security improvements.

The Rosalia School District Board of Directors adopted Resolution No. 2023-17 concerning an EP&O levy to finance educational programs and operation expenses not fully funded by the state.

The proposition authorizes the school district to meet the educational needs of students by replacing an expiring levy to collect an assessed value of $2.50/$1,000 a year at an estimated levy amount of $473,943 in 2025 and an estimated amount of $492,901 in 2026.

Rosalia Superintendent Brett Baum said the 2024 replacement EP&O levy accounts for roughly 12 percent of the district’s overall operating budget. “It helps with athletics,” Baum said, noting that it helps with extracurricular activities, field trips, arts and some maintenance.

Baum said the two-year replacement capital levy on this year’s special election ballot maintains the school’s servers and network.

The capital levy is at a rate of $0.45/$1,000 assessed value, with an estimated levy amount of $85,000 for both the 2025 and 2026 years.

Baum said the Capital levy helps pay for software licenses and internet connection. “The big thing is it helps update our security,” Baum said, noting that they want to continue improvements to safety and security.

Baum said the school district is thankful they’ve had great support for past levies. “It was important to us to keep our tax rate per thousand down, so we’re asking for the same amount we had before,” he said.