Kent ISD asks Forest Hills board to place enhancement millage renewal on next agenda

At the May 19 meeting of the Forest Hills Board of Education, Kent Intermediate School District presenters asked the board to place a resolution on its next agenda supporting renewal of a countywide enhancement millage that currently provides about $2,900,000 a year to Forest Hills Public Schools.

The request came from a Kent ISD presenter, who said the enhancement millage first passed in 2017 and runs through 2027; he asked the board to act at its next meeting so the ISD can place a renewal on the ballot. Consultant Kyle Frey, who identified himself as a CFIR consultant and a former communications director for Grand Rapids Public Schools, explained the mechanics of restoring and renewing the levy and the Headlee rollback and override process.

Why it matters: Kent ISD officials said local districts use enhancement-millage revenue for teacher hiring and retention, technology, third-grade reading and eighth-grade math supports, and career-and-technical-education (CTE) access. Forest Hills Public Schools receives about $2.9 million each year from the levy, and presenters warned that losing that revenue would be “incredibly significant.”

Presenters’ description of the proposal and timeline

Kent ISD presenters described the renewal request as a restoration and renewal: because of the Headlee Amendment’s automatic rollbacks, the ISD will ask voters to restore the small rollback amount and renew the full 0.9 mills (described by presenters as 90 cents per $1,000 of taxable value). Presenters told the board the ISD’s polling shows roughly 70% support for renewal on informational materials alone, and they urged the district to put a resolution on the May board agenda so the ISD can proceed with a November vote. They also said the ISD will pay all costs related to placing the millage on the ballot and running the informational work, and that a private, outside “yes” campaign could still be mounted by others if permitted.

Presenters also noted a legislative change since the last renewal: charter schools must now be included in the millage request. Presenters estimated the charter-school inclusion would reduce Forest Hills’ per-student share “slightly,” roughly $20–$25 by their estimate, and said Kent County has about 100,000 students with about 10,000 enrolled in charter schools.

Procedural threshold and local asks

Presenters told the board that Kent ISD can submit the renewal only if districts representing at least 51% of county students sign on and that larger districts such as Forest Hills are necessary to reach that threshold. The ISD asked the Forest Hills board to place the renewal resolution on the agenda at the board’s next meeting so the board can consider adopting it.

Board reaction and next steps

Board members did not take a formal vote on the millage during the May 19 meeting. Presenters said the ISD will cover the ISD’s administrative and communications costs for the election. The ISD recommended renewing the levy for 10 years (polling favored 10 years) but said a longer term of up to 20 years is permissible. Presenters said the renewal request cannot exceed 3.0 mills and that the current request is 0.9 mills.

The ISD presentation and materials were distributed to the board; presenters asked the board to consider placing a resolution on the next meeting agenda for formal action.

Ending

Kent ISD officials left the meeting asking Forest Hills to consider a formal resolution at its next board meeting and to work with Kent ISD staff to ensure the district’s student-count representation helps qualify the renewal for the ballot. If the board places the resolution on its next agenda, a formal vote would follow at that meeting.