Letter to the Editor: School M&O Levy Amount Stays the Same

SCHOOL LEVY: Money artificially inflates salaries

Vote early or mark your calendar for March 12. That is when the $200,000.00 a month school levy is up for a vote. It will probably pass. I suspect the fallout of not using tax dollars to plaster “for da’ kids” materials everywhere are the people who remember to vote are those who enjoy the high wages and benefits package. It is a sizable voting bloc.

The levy money is used to artificially inflate salaries. In the past 3-4 years, the state has increased funding for schools an average of 5 to 6 percent per year. Yet the district continues to overspend.

Prop. 2 just passed. Have to get that money somewhere. A billionaire is trying to force “Marsy’s Law” on Idaho. Have to get that money somewhere. Agreements are in the making for a Boundary County sewer megaplex. Have to get that money somewhere. The Sheriff would love a new jail. The library would love a new home. The landfill gets older every day. Road & Bridge does an AMAZING job without county tax dollars.

The levy money has become an “opioid” for the District ... time to give it a shot of Narcan.

No matter your vote, just vote.

Rosanne Smith

Moyie Springs

SCHOOL LEVY: Board has kept amount the same

The big news on our Schools these days is that the Boundary School District 101 Board of Trustees has voted not to raise the amount of the M&O Levy that is up for vote on March 12. In doing so, the School Board has committed to operating our schools for the next two years on the same budget that it has had over the previous four years, even though enrollment and cost for basic necessities has begun to rise. The end result is that property taxes that we pay to support our local schools will not increase with the passage of the Levy on March 12.

I commend the School Board members for accomplishing this in the wake of past cuts in funding from the state. They have done their job well and now it is up to us to do ours. Please support your schools and vote YES on March 12. For you early birds, you can vote now at the courthouse.

Greg Johnson

Bonners Ferry