Proposal could go before voters on Nov. 4 ballot
By Shelby Stewart-Soldan
Staff Writer
OXFORD TWP. — During the regular meeting on May 27, Oxford Assistant Superintendent of Business and Operations John Fitzgerald provided the Oxford Community Schools Board of Education with an overview of the upcoming proposed sinking fund ballot proposal, which would potentially be put on the ballot for the Nov. 4 election.
The district previously had a sinking fund, which expired in December of 2022.
“It was a matter of not wanting to put a tax proposal out for the public considering recent events, totally understandable why that was handled the way it was done,” said Fitzgerald. “But, from the past, the last year it was levied, it generated about a million dollars annually. So that kind of money would go directly to the use of working on and repairing our facilities.”
The sinking fund would be in addition to the state aid fund money that the district receives in the form of per-pupil funding from the state, and the local operating non-homestead millage. Currently, the district levies 17.43 mills of the allowed 18 mills for the non-homestead millage. The reduction is due to the Headlee Rollback, which says that if taxable value goes up, the mills levied must go down according to state tax law.
A sinking fund would allow up to 3.0 mills for a period of up to 10 years. Funds would strictly go to building and facilities maintenance, as the foundation allowance goes towards the educational program.
“It’s really a fiduciary responsibility of the board and the administration to take care of these assets,” said Fitzgerald. “These assets are the community’s assets, and we all kind of have that responsibility of taking care of these facilities. If you talk about the bigger projects, like if you want to build a new building, that’s a bond conversation. This program is really for addressing and keeping your current buildings in operating and safe order.”
Currently, the district’s newest building is the high school, which is 25 years old.
“Your typical roof, your typical main operating HVAC systems, parking lots, all the big ticket items, have an operating life of between 20 and 25 years,” he said. “So we are, on our newest building, looking at a lot of upcoming work, let alone our other buildings which are older.”
In the past 10 months, the district has replaced multiple boilers, other technology pieces, repaired HVAC systems and other projects that have exceeded $1 million in cost.
“In an ideal world, that money would come out of the sinking fund, freeing up that million dollars to improve our educational program,” said Fitzgerald.
If the district proposed a .75 mill levy, it would generate about $1.24 million annually, and would cost the average household with $400,000 taxable value about $150 per year. If they levied one mill, it would generate $1.65 million annually with a $200 annual cost to the average household. If they levied 1.25 mills, it would generate $2.05 million annually with a $250 annual cost to the average household.
“To me, a sinking fund, when it comes to a public school, is probably the single best tax that a community can bring on for a school district,” he said.
The issue will come back for a ballot language discussion and first reading at the June 10 board of education meeting.