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Superintendent details $2 million operating referendum to preserve class sizes, bus routes and programming
Summary
At a New Prague Area Schools board meeting, Superintendent Valmute presented a $2 million-a-year, 10-year operating referendum intended to maintain current class sizes, bus routes and programming and to avoid further budget reductions; the presentation included enrollment and revenue-per-student data, program impacts and early-voting information.
Superintendent Valmute presented details of a proposed operating referendum at the New Prague Area Schools board meeting, asking voters to consider a $2,000,000-per-year increase for 10 years to help maintain class sizes, bus routes and programming.
Valmute said the district refined the question after community feedback and a commissioned survey and emphasized the proposal is informational. “Im not telling you how to vote,” Valmute said, adding site teams and a citizens advocacy group are providing community outreach. The district posted a property-tax calculator at mpaschools.org/referendum to let homeowners estimate impacts.
Why it matters: Valmute described four primary uses for the levy revenue: maintain current class-size averages, maintain current bus routes and walking-distance policies, maintain existing programming (notably the seven-period day at the middle and high school), and avoid future budget reductions. She said the request would amount to roughly $20 per month for a home valued at $400,000 under the districts assumptions.
Details presented: Valmute said the districts average class sizes are 24 at the elementary level, 31 at middle school and 30 at high school. She said reducing class sizes would require a larger levy than the $2,000,000 proposed; the current request is aimed at holding present averages rather than lowering them. The proposal is structured as an operating levy (taxing a home, garage and one acre) rather than a bond, so farmland acreage beyond one acre would not be taxed for this question.
Valmute summarized fiscal context: the district has enacted roughly $7 million in prior structural reductions and cost containment, and around 83% of district revenue comes from the state, with roughly 12% coming from local property taxes. She said New Prague Area Schools ranks near the bottom of Minnesota districts on revenue per pupil (characterizing the district as in the bottom 4% statewide) and that even with this levy the district would remain well below the state average per-pupil revenue.
On the renewal/waiver question, Valmute corrected earlier remarks and clarified that a district may use a renewal/waiver one time per ballot question; if this referendum passes, the board could use that option again for a future question. Director Cuff had raised the renewal question during discussion; Valmute said her prior answer had been incorrect and that she wanted to put the corrected interpretation on the record.
Early voting and outreach: Valmute said early voting had begun and encouraged community members to attend informational sessions or use the district website to learn more. She said some extended early-voting hours and weekend sessions were scheduled, and that staff would respond to emailed questions.
What the board said: Board members made brief comments during and after the presentation. One board member said the presentation was factual and did not use scare tactics; Valmute characterized the listed program and service reductions as the "logical consequences" the district might face if additional revenue is not approved.
The referendum presentation was informational; no board vote on the referendum question occurred at the meeting.
Ending: Valmute closed by inviting questions, reminding the public of the web resources, and noting that the district will continue outreach in the weeks before the election.
