Cleveland Heights School Levy: Issue 26 Results

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH — The Cleveland Heights school levy appears to have failed, based on the unofficial vote count by the Cuyahoga County Board of Election. Approximately 52 percent of the community voted against the 7.9 mill operating levy.

The board of elections website says 6,734 votes were cast against the levy, versus 6,120 for the levy.

"Of course, I am disappointed in the levy results. This is an incredibly tough time for our community for many reasons. It’s unfortunate that because of the way our state funds EdChoice vouchers, our school district is left financially damaged. We are already in the process of making staffing and operational budget cuts to the tune of $2.5 million, and even more will likely be on the horizon," said Heights Schools Superintendent Elizabeth Kirby.

"We will continue our advocacy work in ensuring that the state funds EdChoice vouchers directly instead of deducting the funds from public school districts. It’s an unsustainable funding model and must be changed," Kirby added.

The proposed levy broke down to an additional $23 per month for residents with homes valued at $100,000, according to school officials. Opponents of the levy said the tax burden on Cleveland Heights and University Heights residents would be simply too high. Passing the levy would make those communities the most taxed in Ohio, opponents argued.

"If this levy passes, we will be the most-taxed school district in Ohio. It's unsustainable," said Maureen Lynn, the treasurer for Tigers Nation 4 Lower Taxes.

For school district officials, the problem was two-fold: EdChoice funding and the structure of public school funding. The private school voucher program has cost the district millions, according to the Heights Schools. And there's the problem of how public schools are funded in Ohio.

School districts in Ohio rely on property taxes for funding. However, districts do not immediately see increased revenue when property values increase. Instead, districts must return, again and again, to ballots to ask residents to increase school funding.

"If we don't pass this levy, we'll be looking at a $5 million budget reduction next year, which we equate to an average of 67 jobs," CH-UH Schools Chief Financial Officer Scott Gainer told Patch.