Tax measures for three schools on Linn County ballots

Three Linn County school districts are hoping residents approve four measures on the ballot during special school elections next week.

Linn-Mar, North-Linn and College Community school districts all have tax-related items that voters need to approve on Feb. 1 in order for schools to engage in long-term planning.

North-Linn has the most significant ballot initiative in Public Measure D: the sale of $2,612,840 in general obligation bonds to help finance the construction of a new elementary school at the same site as the district's middle and high school. If passed, the bonds would raise the property tax rate by $2.39 for a total of $16.42 per $1,000 of valuation.

The new wing would replace North-Linn's current elementary schools, both of which are 50 to 100 years old and have had no new construction since the 1950s.

Linn-Mar wants to increase its physical plant and equipment levy, Public Measure A, by 67 cents. But the increase is paired with 67 cents' worth of decreases to other levies, so there will be no real change in what property owners will pay.

District funds can be spent only on the specific purpose for which they are authorized. Linn-Mar's measure would allow the school to spend more of its money on school building infrastructure. The district has about 500,000 more square feet of building space now than it did in 1998, leading to a rise in maintenance costs, according to the school district.

At the southern end of the county, College Community has two tax measures up for approval.

The district's first ballot item, Public Measure B, would approve a revenue purpose statement for the statewide Secure an Advanced Vision for Education tax, which replaced the school infrastructure local-option sales tax. This measure would have no effect on residents' taxes; it simply allows money from the Legislature-approved tax to be spent.

The new revenue purpose statement is identical to the previous one, which allowed the local-option funds to be spent on property tax relief, building upgrades, property purchases, technology and energy efficiency.

The other College Community item, Public Measure C, renews the district's physical plant and equipment levy at its current rate of 67 cents per $1,000 of valuation.