King's Board details $9 million in potential cuts if proposed 1% earned-income tax and 1-mill property reduction fail

King's Board of Education officials on a special meeting night laid out what they called a ‘‘pathway’’ to balance next year’s budget if voters reject a combined ballot measure that pairs a 1% earned-income tax (EIT) with a 1-mill property-tax reduction. The district estimated the EIT would generate about $12,500,000 in the first year and that the property-tax reduction would return roughly $1,500,000 to property owners, producing a net of about $11,000,000 in year one.

District presenters said that without new revenue the district faces approximately $9,000,000 in reductions that would begin in the next school year and could affect services across K–12. Officials listed potential cuts and offsets that include eliminating high-school busing and shrinking routes, converting full-day kindergarten to half-day, instituting pay-to-play participation fees for athletics and activities, reducing custodial and support staff, and trimming special-education and enrichment services.

“Our purpose tonight was to share the facts openly and to show the reality of where we are,” said a district presenter during the meeting. The presentation framed the listed reductions as a pathway—not as final decisions—if the ballot measure does not pass, and district staff repeatedly said final choices would be subject to further board discussion and statutory constraints.

Transportation was a large line item: presenters said a state-minimum busing model would eliminate high-school busing, create a two-mile walking radius for K–8 and reduce routes from about 43 to roughly 30, producing an estimated $1,300,000 in savings but increasing ride times and requiring roughly 18 fewer transportation positions to offset the saving. Presenters said about 55% of K–12 students would be affected by the state-minimum change.

On extracurriculars, the district said athletics fees could reach up to $625 per sport per season for high-school and junior-high athletes, without an automatic multi-student or family discount. District staff said the goal of fee proposals would be to self-fund programs and reduce the need for additional staff layoffs.

Programmatic impacts outlined included: elimination of before- and after-school childcare and summer ‘‘King’s Kids’’ programming (estimated savings $112,500); reducing kindergarten from full-day to half-day (estimated $600,000); increasing elementary and secondary class sizes (estimated $1,800,000); cutting certain special-education positions and services including a BCBA and social-communication classrooms (estimated $475,000); fewer specials and reading/intervention staff (estimated $950,000); and reductions in high-school electives and AP/advanced coursework (estimated $450,000). Presenters said the district serves about 665 students on IEPs and that English-learner counts had climbed materially in recent years (staff reported roughly 700+ students in ESL services in the latest snapshots).

The district also described adjustments to noninstructional revenue such as raising facility rental fees (estimated $50,000) and increasing outsourcing of custodial work (about $100,000). Presenters identified the GoGuardian student-monitoring platform as a safety tool operating 24/7 with a live-person follow-up and said its annual cost is about $70,000.

Board members raised multiple operational and equity questions: whether walk-zone miles are road miles (presenters said they are measured along driving distance), how pay-to-play fees would affect lower-income families (presenters said individual organizations would determine pass-throughs and that scholarships or discounts would require separate discussion), and how difficult it would be to restore eliminated services later (presenters said restoration is typically difficult and may require future new revenue requests). A presenter noted that once a program or staff is lost, bringing it back generally requires asking voters for additional funding.

Administrators said the figures shown were intended to be comprehensive examples of the scale of potential reductions, not final commitments. They added the board is not voting on any layoffs or program eliminations at the meeting and that specific actions would be developed only if the district must implement cuts.

The board was told that the $9 million pathway could affect roughly 125 staff positions across categories including childcare, custodial, safety, teachers, administrators and support roles. Presenters warned potential facility reconfiguration or boundary redrawing could be considered in tandem with staffing cuts to achieve long-term operational savings.

The district announced two community information meetings to review the ballot issue and answer questions: (1) the next night at South Lebanon Elementary at 7 p.m., and (2) October 8 at Columbia at 7 p.m.; the district also posted an FAQ and explainer video on kingslocal.net. The meeting closed after a procedural motion to adjourn was moved, seconded and approved.

What happens next: the presentation clarified the fiscal mechanics of the ballot language, offered concrete estimates for potential reductions if the measure fails, and scheduled public engagement sessions. District leaders said they will continue exploring mitigation options but that the numbers reflect the scale of choices likely needed without new local revenue.

Votes at a glance: the board approved the evening’s agenda at the start of the meeting (motion, second; roll-call consent recorded) and later voted to adjourn (motion, second; roll-call consent recorded).