Five districts seek levy OK
A recent lawsuit settlement with the state Legislature has proved a boon to local public school budgets just before school elections.
Many local schools received between $20,000 and $25,000 in the settlement between the state and the Montana Quality Education Coalition. The amount was enough to allow some local school districts to cancel levy requests or reduce the amount they will ask voters to approve.
Absentee ballots for the May 8 election are available as of Wednesday.
Most of the county’s districts are not asking voters to approve levies, but a handful are asking taxpayers to help them balance their budgets.
The Whitefish, Columbia Falls, Olney-Bissell, Somers and Kalispell school districts are requesting general-fund levies. General-fund levies provide money for operating schools, such as purchasing textbooks and teaching materials, and paying teachers’ salaries.
Kalispell Public Schools is also requesting a building reserve and technology levy, which is specifically for facility maintenance and repair and improvements in educational technology. This is a high-school levy, which means voters in elementary districts whose students attend Flathead or Glacier high school have a say in the levy’s passage. (See map on Page A3).
In addition to levy requests, some school districts will hold trustee elections.
Several trustee elections have been canceled. When the same number of candidates file as there are open seats on the school board, those candidates are elected by acclamation, and districts do not need to hold elections.
Following is a breakdown of ballot issues in Flathead County public school districts:
Kalispell
Elementary general-fund levy request: $211,500. Cost to taxpayers: $5.83 a year on a home with a $100,000 assessed value, or $11.65 for a $200,000 home.
High school building reserve request: $4,127,915. Cost to taxpayers: $10.20 a year on a home with an assessed value of $100,000, or $20.41 on a $200,000 home.
Trustee election will be for one three-year term on a high school district seat representing the Cayuse Prairie, Creston, Deer Park, and Fair-Mont-Egan elementary districts. Joe Brenneman and incumbent Ivan Lorentzen are the candidates.
Trustees elected by acclamation: incumbent Mary Ruby, Don Murray and David Schultz.
Whitefish
High school general-fund levy request: $45,782. Cost to taxpayers: $1.25 a year on a home with a $100,000 assessed value, or $2.50 on a $200,000 home.
Trustee election is for two three-year terms. Candidates are Shawn Tucker and incumbents Shannon Hanson and Patricia Jarvi.
Olney-Bissell
General-fund levy request: $18,800. Cost to taxpayers: $10.27 a year on a home with a $100,000 assessed value, or $20.54 on a $200,000 home.
Some voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy.
Trustees elected by acclamation: Tim Bartholomew for a three-year term and Elizabeth Winckler for a one-year term.
Columbia Falls
Elementary general-fund levy request: $91,544. Cost to taxpayers: $4.70 a year on a home with a $100,000 assessed value, or $9.40 on a $200,000 home.
High school general-fund levy request: $81,985. Cost to taxpayers: $3.68 a year on a home with a $100,000 assessed value, or $7.36 on a $200,000 home.
Trustee election is for two three-year terms. Candidates are Carl Motichka, Benjamin Shafer, Glenn Wehe and incumbents James Henjum and Jill Rocksund.
Somers-Lakeside
General-fund levy request: $405,000. Cost to taxpayers: $26.61 a year on a home with a $100,000 assessed value, or $53.23 on a $200,000 home.
Trustee election is for two three-year terms. Incumbent Dave Alexander, Samuel Bagley, John Hollensteiner and Stephen Naso are the candidates.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy.
Bigfork
No levy request.
Two trustees elected by acclamation for three-year terms: Bigfork Elementary/High School incumbent Maureen Averill and Patricia Landon, representing the Swan River Elementary District.
Cayuse Prairie
No levy request.
Two trustees elected by acclamation for three-year terms: Kevin Fox and Doug Tu.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy and for one seat on the Kalispell high school board.
Creston
No levy request.
Trustees elected by acclamation: incumbent Stan Uskoski for a three-year term and Rene Johnson for a two-year term.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy and for one seat on the Kalispell high school board.
Evergreen
No levy request.
One trustee elected by acclamation for a three-year term: Paul Wigle.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy.
Fair-Mont-Egan
No levy request.
Two trustees elected by acclamation for three-year terms: incumbent Andrew Goolden and Tom Weller.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy and for one seat on the Kalispell high school board.
Helena Flats
No levy request.
Two trustees elected by acclamation for three-year terms: KaiEllen Bucher and Kevin Fritz.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy.
Marion
No levy request.
Two trustees elected by acclamation for three-year terms: incumbents Ann Glimm and Lily Brower.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy.
Smith Valley
No levy request.
Three trustees elected by acclamation: incumbents Jerry Snell and Duane Dierenfield for three-year terms and Keri Geldrich for a two-year term.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy.
Swan River
No levy request.
Trustees to be elected by acclamation for two one-year terms pending approval at a May 8 board meeting.
West Glacier
No levy request.
Trustee elected by acclamation for a three-year term: incumbent Alice Biel.
West Valley
No levy request.
Trustee election is for two three-year terms. Sean Brannan and incumbents Cory Hill and Jane Wheeler are the candidates.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy.
Kila
No levy request.
Trustee election is for one three-year term; Angela Carlson and Jennifer Crowley are the candidates. Trustee elected by acclamation to a two-year term: incumbent Angie Giles.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy.
Deer Park
No levy request.
Trustees elected by acclamation for two three-year terms: incumbent Harm Toren and Tara Norick.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy and for one seat on the Kalispell high school board.
Pleasant Valley
No levy request.
Trustee elected by acclamation to a three-year term: Ann Marie Becker.
Voters in this district may vote on Kalispell’s building reserve levy.