HAVRE, Mont. (NMB) – In the midst of declining enrollment at Havre High School, the Havre Public School District is moving to put a funding levy on the ballot for the 2020 Election.
The details of the levy are still being ironed out, but it would likely be for between $90,000 to $100,000.
Superintendent Andy Carlson says this levy is necessary because despite next year’s freshman class likely helping boost enrollment, the state government sets funding based on enrollment from previous years.
“We’re going to ask to keep our current funding levels. We’re looking down the road, and we’re actually going to grow next year, but we won’t receive funding for those students until the subsequent year. We’ve been really cautious, we’ve not run levies when we haven’t needed it, but we’re at a point where we want to maintain our current funding level.”
This would be the first general fund levy Havre Public Schools has put on the ballot since 2016.
“Most folks don’t get real excited when we talk about property taxes and the potential to have those impacted, which is why we’ve been real cognoscente of that and haven’t run them when we haven’t needed to. But in order to maintain our current funding levels, that’s the story at our high school right now.”
The levy will be on the agenda at the next board meeting, with the vote to have it on the ballot occurring in May.
