The Oxford Board of Education voted 5-0 Aug. 9 to approve a resolution that put two millage proposals on the Nov. 8 ballot, following the defeat of a $5 million-per-year operating tax which appeared in the primary election August 2.

Assistant Superintendent of Business and Operations Sam Barna said this move will split the previous millage proposal into two items rather than one. This way, one can be accurately labeled as a renewal while the other can be properly labeled as an increase.

According to ballot language, the millage renewal proposal would “authorize millage rate limitation of 17.8078 mills ($17.8078 on each $1,000 of taxable valuation) on the amount of taxes” against all non-homestead property.

If approved, it would generate an estimated $5,187,196 in the first year of its levy.

Non-homestead properties include businesses, commercial and industrial properties, second homes, vacation homes, rental properties and vacant land not adjacent to an owner’s homestead property. This would not be levied against principal residential (homestead) or qualified agricultural properties.

The second item on the ballot will be the millage restoration proposal, which would allow the current non-homestead taxation of 17.8078 mills to “be increased by 0.1922 mill ($0.1922 on each $1,000 of taxable valuation.”

If approved, this would generate an estimated $55,388 in revenue in the first year of its levy.

State law, under the Headlee Amendment, allows districts to levy up to 18 mills on non-homestead properties for operating purposes. One mill is equal to $1 for every $1,000 of a property’s taxable value.

A key provision of the Headlee Amendment requires a district to reduce its millage when annual growth on existing property is greater than the rate of inflation. The ballot language notes the millage restoration proposal would “restore millage lost as a result of the reduction required by the Michigan Constitution of 1963,” which includes the Headlee Amendment.

During the meeting, Barna reminded the public that even if both the millage renewal and increase proposals pass in November, the district will not be levying more than 18 mills on non-homestead properties. “That restoration (amount of 0.1922) is basically the incremental amount between 18 mills and the current 17.8078 (mills), so we can get back to the full 18 mills,” Barna said.

Both millages would be levied from 2017 through 2026 if approved.

During the meeting, several board members reflected on the recent millage failure, noting that they could have had stronger communication with the public.

Sixty-one votes led to the failure of Oxford’s request for the10-year, 18.4442-mill operating tax on all non-homestead property in the district beginning July 2017.

The proposal was a renewal and an increase all rolled into one.

Board Vice President Kim Shumaker said if the millage renewal should fail again in November, it would mean the loss of more than $5 million in revenue and would have dire consequences for the district and its programs.

“I think it’s important for those who have a vested interest in the community to know that if this (renewal) doesn’t pass… the types of things that we have been fortunate as a board to not have to discuss will now all have to be on the table,” she said. “I’d be thankful that my kids have graduated because the impact would be that significant to the programs and the things that they offer.”

Board Treasurer Mike Schweig said he believed the split millage proposals, in combination with better communication with the public, will be a positive step forward for the district.

“I think this is a great response to what we heard from the community in the first go-around, in terms of the renewal, and I think we need to take these steps in order to get a better measure of what the community feels we can do for the district in terms of financial security,” he said.

For more information on the results from the district’s previous millage proposal in the Aug. 2 primary, please read “District looks to split failed millage for Nov. 8 ballot.”