Kiona-Benton School District asks voters to approve $5.2 million replacement levy

Ballots went out earlier this week for a special election in the Kiona-Benton School District.

If approved, the 2-year, $5.2 million dollar replacement levy would provide the funding needed to continue running enrichment programs for students.

"PE, art, band, choir, all the things going on at the (grades) 6-12 level, as well as our interscholastic athletics, our FSA program, things of that nature," said Pete Peterson, Superintendent of Schools at Ki-Be. "These go above and beyond what the state sees as basic education."

Last year, state lawmakers adjusted the education budget to fully fund education according to the McCleary Decision.

However, especially for smaller school districts, that doesn't necessarily include all the funding needed to provide enrichment activities, which can cause some confusion.

"When you hear about the McCleary Fix, there are many districts in our state, depending on what metrics you use, that simply aren't collecting the same amount of revenue, between the local levy dollars and the state dollars to fund at the same levels we were funding at before the McCleary Fix," Peterson said.

The district is asking voters to approve $2.50 per $1,000 of assessed value for 2021-2022, which would amount to about $625 for a $250,000 home. That's about a 27% increase compared to the last levy.

Peterson says the district also looks at state and federal grants to help supplement funding for various educational and enrichment programs.

The special election requires 50% plus one vote in support in order to pass.

The Benton County Auditor's office sent out the ballots on Wednesday, January 22, 2020. They must be returned or post-marked by February 11th to be counted.