Thank you to those who voted in yesterday’s election. The School District of Belleville is pleased to announce that unofficial returns show that the operational referendum question passed by a margin of 1897 “Yes” votes (60.5%) to 1240 “No” votes (39.5%).
On behalf of the Belleville Board of Education and school district staff, I want to express our gratitude for your support. We appreciate the trust you have placed in the district and the investment you are making in our students and the future of the community.
The successful referendum will allow the school district to (1) fairly compensate staff, (2) invest in high-quality curriculum and training to produce increased student achievement, and (3) update and maintain our facilities. We pledge to be faithful financial stewards for the district.
The community has once again demonstrated its support for our schools. This is so valued and appreciated! It truly is a great day to be a Wildcat!
Nate Perry - District Administrator
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A recurring operating referendum will be on the November 8th ballot from the School District of Belleville. This webpage will serve as a repository of information about that referendum seeking to exceed the revenue limit by up to $999,999.
If questions arise, please contact Nate Perry, District Administrator, at perryn@belleville.k12.wi.us or 608-835-6120 Ext. 3440, or Erik Farrar, Business Manager, at farrare@belleville.k12.wi.us or 608-835-6120 Ext. 3204.
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The Department of Public Instruction lists school districts within the state going to the voters with a referendum question on November 8, 2022. There are 78 referendum questions up for a vote this fall around the state.
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From data pulled from the 2021-22 school year, the six districts that surround Belleville (Albany, Monticello, Mount Horeb, New Glarus, Oregon, and Verona), have a starting base salary of $42,800. Belleville’s starting base wage currently sits at $40,000. Those same districts have a top-end teacher salary averaging $70,988.33. There was only one teacher with a salary over $70,000 (71,523.78) in Belleville last school year.
If the referendum does not pass, the district is facing a $600,000-$700,000 budget deficit for the 2023-24 school year. Most other districts in the area are experiencing a similar set of circumstances and are referring to it as a “financial cliff.” The only way to trim that amount of money from a roughly $13M budget is to cut staff. The district would have to cut at least six staff members in an attempt to balance next year’s budget. The last two superintendents and last two Business Managers have already scoured the budget over the last decade looking for other cuts and potential savings.
The school district is seeking $999,999 in an operating referendum. That number was determined based on three needs split approximately in thirds of that total amount- an existing budget deficit, an increase in staff salaries and wages from the rise in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), and capital maintenance projects. The administrative team is still comfortable with that number.
With CPI now trending at 8.5% for 2022-23 negotiations, money toward staff compensation may consume a larger percentage of the $999,999 than originally thought. However, the district is exploring ways to pay for capital maintenance projects, when paired with energy efficiency savings.
If the referendum passes, the district would receive revenue that it could use in its General Fund (Fund 10). The pool is a completely separate entity with revenues and expenses housed in the Community Service Fund (Fund 80). The two funds cannot mix. For example, textbooks cannot be purchased out of Fund 80, and pool entrance fees cannot be deposited into Fund 10. In fact, the pool has to charge the school district for its use during Summer School swim lessons.
The Kiddie Pool at the Aquatic Center is failing. It is on a bromine system, as opposed to the large pool which was converted to chlorine a number of years ago. The Kiddie Pool is often closed because the chemicals cannot be adequately balanced. In addition, it does not have a zero-depth entry for safety purposes like most other small pools its size.
For a total Fund 80 tax levy of approximately $505,000, a School District of Belleville taxpayer with a $300,000 home will have contributed a total of $180 for the splash pad that will last 25 years. The District believes that the splash pad will serve as a community attraction for years to come.
There are 5,804 residents within the School District of Belleville’s borders. There are approximately 560 families that send their children to Belleville schools. The school district currently has a total enrollment of 928 students.
According the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction's site on Comparative Cost Per Member, Belleville ranks 338th out of the 420 districts (or in the bottom 20%) on the DPI spreadsheet (single-year all-district comparative cost summary data files from the audited 20-21 Annual Report data). Similarly, Belleville ranks 17th out of 22 schools in Dane County and the Capitol Conference in per-pupil spending. Belleville also falls well below the state average of $12,929 spending per student, at $11,806.
A recurring operational referendum is voted on only once by the voters and then a levy could occur every year after that. The School District of Belleville is seeking a recurring operational referendum for up to $999,999 for a number of reasons.
- Advisors from the Department of Public Instruction and Robert W. Baird & Co. have suggested that the financial issues currently facing the school district will remain into the future.
- Once increases in wages and salaries are negotiated with staff, those costs are added to base wages/salaries and remain in the budget in the future. They are not one-time costs.
- Advice from other districts with experience with operating referenda warned against voter fatigue, with regular votes on non-recurring referenda.
- Costs in almost all areas of the school district budget (such as utilities, insurance, and supplies) continue to rise.
- No new aid from the state is expected in the next biennial budget. That was the case in the most recent state budget as well.
- The school district does not have to levy up to the maximum but may do so in years in which maintenance projects, such as roof replacements, are scheduled.
No. No matter what happens with state funding into the future, the district would only levy what it needs and would not have to levy the entire $999,999 each year.
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