Jeffco voters to consider $133 million in tax increases to benefit public schools

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Jefferson County voters will decide in November whether to approve $133 million in tax increases to boost teacher salaries, fund more career and technical education classes, repair school buildings, and improve security systems.

The Jeffco school board voted unanimously Thursday to put two measures on the Nov. 3 ballot.

If passed, the measures would increase property taxes by about $42 per year on every $100,000 of a home’s value, according to a district spokesperson. For a $650,000 home, that would amount to $273 per year.

The measures are called mill levy overrides, and they come at a crucial time for 74,000-student Jeffco Public Schools. Declining enrollment and other factors mean Colorado’s second-largest school district is facing a continued budget deficit. If the overrides fail, district leaders said it’s likely Jeffco will have to close more schools, lay off staff, or freeze salaries.

“If these measures don’t pass, we could find ourselves having to make additional reductions, and that could mean more hardships for our staff, our families, and our school communities,” board member Denine Echevarria said.

Measure 5A is a $73 million mill levy override to increase pay for teachers, principals, and school support staff, as well as fund more career and technical education classes for students.

A district presentation said $15 million would be used to fund already-promised pay increases, and $39.5 million could be used for future salary boosts. More than $10 million would be spent on career and technical education, and more than $8.5 million would go to the district’s charter schools. State law requires districts to share mill levy override funding with charter schools.

Measure 5B is a $60 million mill levy override to fund building maintenance projects, including repair parking lots, replace leaky roofs, and fix heating and cooling systems. It would also pay to replace aging technology and improve school security systems. About $7 million of the $60 million would go to Jeffco charter schools.

Board members acknowledged Thursday that the district faces several hurdles to passing the measures, including skepticism about how it spent the money from the last voter-approved tax increase and an aging population without ties to public schools. Only 26% of Jefferson County households have children, according to the United States Census Bureau.

The last time Jeffco voters approved a mill levy override was in 2018 for $33 million. In 2016, voters rejected both a mill levy override and a bond measure.

“It is reasonable to have questions, pain points, or skepticism based on past district decisions and performance,” board Vice President Erin Kenworthy said. “Ask the tough questions, be curious — and I’m going to ask you to support this investment in Jeffco’s future.”

Students urged the board Thursday to put the measures on the ballot.

“Today was my first day of my junior year, and I already realized that my class sizes were immensely larger,” said Kris Clark, a Chatfield High School junior. “I had 31 students in all three of my classes, and we had to add desks. It was extremely uncomfortable in my physics class because of the lack of space for proper learning and movement.”

Lucia Rubino, a junior at Lakewood High, said families face higher activities fees this year.

“While $100 or $200 might be manageable for one family, it might be the only reason another student can’t participate,” Rubino said.

Gavin Vahle, a senior at Dakota Ridge High, said rigorous and relevant career and technical education classes are important, and students “want learning that gives us more reasons to actually be excited about coming to school.”

Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.