'B for Bayless’ Tax Levy Campaign Revs Up Online

With the April 3 election just a few weeks away, supporters of ’s Proprosition B are taking their campaign to the web.

B for Bayless is a new website aiming to get out information about the need for the the school board put on the ballot in January. The site contains pages laying out the case for the levy and the dire consequences the district predicts should the measure not pass.

B for Bayless also has a Facebook page that has been posting information, such as tax rate and assessed valuation comparisons with other school districts. The page now has over 140 likes and is serving as a board for debate and cheering on of Prop B.

“I would like to say that I did not approve of the tax increase when I first learned about it, but after I did my homework I am singing a new tune,” wrote Shirley Martin-Schroeder on B for Bayless’s Facebook wall.

Others were still looking to be convinced.

“I like Bayless School District, but this is going to hurt,” wrote Dean Larson after calculating that the 92 cents would cost an additional $262 taxes on a home of $150,000.

Meanwhile Bayless parent and President Kelly Kipper has taken to Youtube to make the case for Prob B.

“It’s definitely got the feel of a ‘grassroots’ movement,” Kipper told Patch of the B for Bayless campaign.

Kipper and B for Bayless argue that without the tax increase, Bayless will soon no longer be able to function or may lose its accreditation, potentially resulting in merger with a nearby district, which they say would be bad for all involved.

“If Prop B does not pass, Bayless Schools will continue making deeper and more painful cuts to the school budget. But unlike our previous cuts, these new cuts will begin to more directly affect students in the classroom,” the B for Bayless site says.

This echoes the latest word from the Bayless School Board, as it moves to make . The board has formed three committees to look for belts to tighten in the areas of primary school, 6-12 grades and support staff. Total they expect to need at least $1 million in cuts to survive the coming school year, even if Prop B passes and begins to dig the district out of its revenue hole.

“The fact is there’s not a lot of fluff here,” Bayless School Board President Jeff Preisack said.

The board is hoping that some give can be found by consolidating to adjust for the district’s falling student population. According to Preisack Bayless lost around 150 students between the 2009-2010 and the 2010-2011 school years, many from families whose homes may have been foreclosed on. But this consolidation could mean layoffs for some teachers.

Bayless has not had a tax increase since 2001. The election is on April 3.