Voters express trepidation over school budget votes

Staff

2 years ago

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Concerns over runaway school budgets and a resulting average 20% hike in property taxes are on the minds of many voters and town officials this Town Meeting Day. Despite a bill signed by the governor last week that allows school districts to postpone those votes and retool their budgets, around 95 districts have opted to move forward. Voters we spoke to Tuesday say that while they support schools, they have mixed feelings about the tax implications.

School spending is the hot topic this Town Meeting Day.

“I want my children to have a good education. And I do feel as if that, you know, at least this part of the country, we put our money on education,” said Louanne McLeod, who is among Burlington voters deciding if they want to pass a $119 million school budget.

This year’s budget is expected to bring a 15.6% property tax increase. “It’s a hard decision. I struggle with the increasing property taxes but I do think that the school budget is very important,” said local resident Nick Parrish.

Balancing the importance of education and the reality of living in an expensive part of the country is weighing on voters.

In South Burlington, a similar conversation is underway but with a $71 million budget that would result in a 25% property tax hike.

“I’ve come from an area where there’s been a lot of no votes for the budget,” said local resident Tony Bilodeau. “Looking over the budget that they proposed here, it makes… it’s not crazy. It makes a lot of sense. Sadly, health care is becoming a real issue.”

“It was a little bit too extreme for a lot of taxpayers and felt that there wasn’t enough empathy for taxpayers,” said Sue Conley of South Burlington. “I think we all need to take a step back and recognize that we need to reduce our spending.”

The Champlain Valley School District, one of the largest in the state, is asking voters to approve over $105 million for a budget, a nearly 10% increase. School officials say the anticipated property tax rate hikes range from 19% to 26% in their four towns.

“It’s a tough decision to make. The kids, the teachers, everyone deserve the budget to pass. But as a resident, it’s a really tough financial position,” said Linda Rhodes of Williston.

At least 11 school districts in Vermont are postponing their school budgets.