Avon Schools Levy Up for Vote May 3

On May 3, Avon residents will vote on Issue 3, a five-year, 2.31-mill levy that, if renewed, would continue to generate about $1.8 million per year in revenue for Avon City Schools.

The proposed five-year emergency operating levy, which would run from 2012-16, would neither increase nor decrease taxes as there’s currently a 2.9 mill levy in effect that is slated to expire after this school year, Avon Board of Education member Scott Radcliffe said.

At the end of a levy's lifespan, the Board of Education must place a renewal levy on the ballot to continue to receive the same amount of money that the original levy raised.

 With the 2.31 mill rate, homeowners would continue to pay $70.76 per $100,000 of property valuation, he said. Senior citizens who qualify for the Homestead Exemption pay less.

The annual $1.8 million in revenue from the levy would go directly into the school’s general fund to help pay for personnel and operating expenses, like: salaries, textbooks, equipment, supplies, utilities, insurance and transportation. 

The levy’s revenue would cut into the proposed $2.2 million in state funding losses that would hit the district over the next two school years.

“At this point in time, the money generated from the renewal of this levy would keep things running relatively smoothly in the district and it would work to offset the losses we’d incur if (Governor John) Kasich’s proposed budget goes into effect as is,” he said.