Fall 2022 Referendum Round Up

Forty-two of the referenda are seeking authority to increase revenue limit authority.  That is in addition to the 50 such questions that have already gone before school district voters this year. Experts believe the 92 referendums seeking additional operating revenues is the highest total ever in a single calendar year.  The highest previous total in a calendar year was 82, set in 2000 and equaled in 2001.

The large number of revenue limit referenda is not surprising given the recent history of a frozen revenue limits and high inflation.  There has been no per pupil increase in revenue limits in six of the past eight years and revenue limits were frozen for both the 2021-22 an 2022-23 school year.

The need for school districts to ask taxpayers to step in to provide the resources students need is a result of continuing lack of support at the state level for adequate funding and a refusal by the current legislature to advance solutions for Wisconsin’s broken school funding system.

“Parents and educators work together every day to give children the best education possible, and it’s time our legislature take action to fix how public schools are funded,” said teacher Peggy Wirtz-Olsen, WEAC President. “Governor Tony Evers has worked to direct what funding he can to support learning and mental health for students who need it, but there’s a better way and that starts with the governor’s proposed education budget.”

“Voters this fall will decide between Governor Tony Evers, who always puts students first, and his opponent who has said more school funding is “insane,” Wirtz-Olsen said. “The difference is clear.”

Some key votes include:

• La Crosse School District: $194,700,000 to purchase land, construct a new high school and make renovations and improvements to the old high school for use as a middle school.
• Verona Area School District: Exceed the revenue cap by $19 million a year on a recurring basis for educational programming, maintaining and supporting instructional and extracurricular programs, and paying salary and other operational expenses.
• Middleton-Cross Plains School District: Exceed the revenue cap by $65,470,000 over a four year period for ongoing educational and extracurricular programming, and compensation, and other operational expenses.

When you add in the 74 ballot questions asking for authority to issue debt for facilities related projects, the total number of school district referendum questions is the highest it has been since calendar year 2000, when 192 school district referenda of all types took place. (That 2000 total was prior to restrictions being placed on when school district referenda cold take place and how many times a district could place referendum questions before voters in a calendar year.)

So far this year, 44 of the 50 ballot questions (88 percent) seeking to raise revenue limits have been approved by voters. Of the 41 non-recurring (or temporary) requests to raise revenue limits, 38 were approved (92.7 percent).  Voters approved a lower percentage of recurring requests (or permanent) requests with 6 of 9 ballot questions (66.7 percent) receiving approval.

Of the 42 revenue limit questions on the Nov. 8 ballot, two-thirds (28) request non-recurring authority to increase revenue limits, while one-third (14) ask for recurring authority.