State budget proposals could cut roughly $14 million from Lakewood City Schools over two years, treasurer warns

Kent Zeman, treasurer for Lakewood City Schools, told the Lakewood City Schools Board of Education that state budget proposals under consideration could substantially reduce revenue the district now receives from local levies.

"This is the first year since the community supported the 2020 levy that expenditures are exceeding revenues," Zeman said, and he reported that the district's general fund revenues for the current year total just over $85,000,000 while expenditures are coming in at $88,200,000. He said the district's 2020 operating levy originally brought in about $3,900,000 and remains constrained by House Bill 920, which limits levy revenue to the amount it produced when first approved.

Zeman said Lakewood is a property-tax-driven, "guaranteed" district under the state's fair school funding plan and that roughly 60% of the district's revenue comes from local property taxes while about 27% is state funding (including what he described as a 6% portion that represents property tax reimbursements from the state). He said the district receives roughly $18,000,000 under the state's funding guarantee that has been stable since 2008.

On the possible effects of legislation in Columbus, Zeman said the House proposal would allow the local county budget commission — the county auditor, county prosecutor and county…