Edinburgh homeowners who want information about a property tax hike that Edinburgh Community Schools is considering can attend a public meeting next week to learn more.
The tax hike would come in the form of a referendum, but school administrators are unsure of how much money they’ll need to raise teacher salaries, which would be the primary focus of the referendum, Superintendent Doug Arnold said.
Edinburgh schools would also use some of that money for bus replacement and capital projects.
The Edinburgh school board approved an increase in teacher salaries on Monday. Teachers with no previous experience will earn $36,450 during the 2019-20 school year, up $350 from the year before. Starting teacher salaries in Edinburgh trail other local school district by thousands of dollars, including Greenwood, Clark-Pleasant and Center Grove schools, where all full-time teachers get paid more than $40,000 for a full year of work.
During the 2020-21 school year, full-time teachers at Franklin schools will all make at least $40,000 too, because of its referendum which passed last spring.
“Teacher raises have been a long and difficult conversation,” Arnold said. “If you look at surrounding districts’ base salaries, we’ve lost people because of that. The teachers have been fantastic because they know money has been very limited. They’re not overly aggressive at all in negotiations, but it’s important and the board thinks it’s important to take a look at that. We want to hire the people we need and maintain good quality staff.”
Edinburgh schools lost about $315,000 in property tax money this year to Indiana circuit breaker tax caps, and the district received just $19,561 more in per-student funding from the state this year compared to $156,000 more last year due to declining student enrollment, Arnold said.
Enrollment dropped to 814 students this year from 904 during the 2015-16 school year.
At the Oct. 30 meeting, consultant Robin Winston of the Indianapolis-based Winston/Terrell group will present on what a referendum would look like for Edinburgh schools, after which the public will be allowed to ask questions.
In addition to raising teacher salaries, Edinburgh schools wants to fund capital projects, such as repairing tennis courts, replacing an awning at the high school and working on heating and air systems. Repairing the tennis courts could cost up to $100,000, while replacing the awning could cost $20,000, Arnold said in September.
With the referendum, Edinburgh schools could also replace some of its older buses that it hasn’t been able to due to budget constraints. The district wants to replace one bus every one to two years, in order to retire them once they age a decade, Arnold said.
If Edinburgh schools wants to put a referendum question on the ballot for the May election, the school board would have to approve that question in January.
In the last year, three Johnson County school districts have asked voters to increase their property taxes. Last November, voters passed a referendum that allowed Clark-Pleasant Community Schools to raise property taxes to fund mental health support and school security.
Then, in May, voters passed a Franklin Community Schools referendum that will allow the district to raise teacher and support staff salaries and provide mental health support for students.
Next month, voters in White River Township will have the option to increase their property taxes to support increased security and mental health services at Center Grove Community Schools.
This is the second meeting advertised as a public meeting for the referendum. The first, in September, was illegally changed to an executive session without notice, violating Indiana Open Door laws.
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Edinburgh Community Schools public meeting
What: A community meeting to discuss a potential referendum.
When: 6 p.m. Oct. 30
Where: Administration building, 202 S. Keeley St., Edinburgh.
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