Dolores RE-4A school district’s mill levy issue on the election ballot has been passed by voters in the district in unofficial results.
According to updated results on Nov. 9, it passed comfortably, with 68.26% of the vote “yes,” and 31.74% “no.”
This mill levy will not raise taxes in the district.
The mill levy was originally voted in during the 2008 election and was extended in 2015. It is set to expire on Dec. 31.
The ballot language expressed that the mill levy, if passed, would be “utilized for general fund purposes of the district, including: instructional materials, supplies and technology; staff recruitment and retention, including salary increases.”
This mill levy also includes a “sunset,” allowing the district to “reassess future needs and voters can review the district's fiscal accountability and spending of these tax dollars.”
The mill levy found its way to the Dolores school board’s discussion items in April, when former Superintendent Reece Blincoe was still in the district. Blincoe told the board that the mill levy is already in effect, but must be renewed.
The board discussed lowering the mill levy so that it would not cost taxpayers at much money as they were paying prior to the renewal.
The mill levy was then approved in the May board meeting action items for $360,000, down $30,000 from $390,000. The approval also allowed the district to use the mill levy for salaries and education supplies (including technology), with a maximum usage of eight years, putting it on another election year, should it need to be renewed again.
The ballot language was finalized and dropped off at the county clerk’s office in September, according to acting Superintendent Alesa Reed in the district’s September board meeting.
