MANITOWOC, Wis. (WFRV) The Manitowoc Public School District Board of Education has voted to add a referendum to the April 6 election ballot.
Residents in the school district will vote on an operating referendum asking for up to $4.3 million annually, for three years, to maintain existing K-12 district-wide educational programming and opportunities as well as fund capital and technology needs.
MPSD Superintendent Mark Holzman says this in a release, “Without approval, substantial cuts will need to be made to district-wide staffing and programs in each of the next three years that could impact MPSD students for the next decade.”
If approved, the referendum would help all schools and students with little to no tax impact. The zero tax impact would be possible as long as property values continue to increase an average of 3% and there is no major changes in state aid to the district.
The school tax rate would also decrease if the referendum is passed. It would go down by 1% from $7.81 per $1,000 of equalized home value to $7.80 in 2021-2022.
MPSD’s tax rate has decreased in each of the past six years.
Voters approved a three-year operational referendum in April 2018 that expires at the end of this school year.
The Board of Education and district administration plans to hold informational sessions before the April 6 election.