Some school districts in Northeast Ohio are worrying about what’s next after their levy attempts failed in the Nov. 5 election.
At least half of the levies in Northeast Ohio failed according to an Ideastream Public Media analysis. Most new requests for tax increases failed in Lorain and Summit counties. Half of all levy attempts failed statewide, the Ohio School Board Association said in a press release. Voters approved about 70% of all education levies in the November 2023 election.
"Last night’s levy results are a tough reminder of the challenges Ohio’s schools are facing,” Ohio School Boards Association (OSBA) Director of Legislative Services Jennifer Hogue said in a statement the day after the election. “These results indicate that many communities are struggling to support local funding for education, likely impacted by the economic pressures felt across the state. School levies provide essential funding for academic programs, student services and school operations."
Strongsville City School District’s third levy attempt since last November failed by a 20-point margin, according to unofficial results, despite the district dropping its overall ask, making it lower than the previous levy that voters had supported. Some hard decisions will be ahead, starting with at least a $3 million budget cut for the next school year, said Superintendent Cameron Ryba during a Nov. 7 Board of Education meeting.
"Although the levy has failed, our expenses will continue to increase," Ryba said. "The challenges and needs of our students will continue to increase and we still have to address those, they don’t go away."
The school district had previously shared a graphic suggesting it could cut staff, course offerings and bus transportation. Ryba said the district is growing and has had to teach students in mobile units; meanwhile, the district has held off on any bond issues to fund new buildings to accommodate all of its students while it waits for approval of a levy to cover operations.
A local GOP group has opposed the last three levy attempts. Shannon Burns, president of the Strongsville GOP, said residents feel overtaxed and said the school district has plenty in reserves now. But he said his group would support a smaller tax.
"It has to be something that is in line with what the voters want," he said.
Strongsville School Board President Richard Micko said the state should provide relief to property owners who have seen significant increases on their taxes after sexennial reappraisals; the legislature has introduced a variety of bills on this front, but few have passed. Micko said that doesn't change the fact that the district will still need to cut back without levy support, with its five-year forecast showing it out of money by the end of the 2027-2028 school year.
Board Member Sharon Kilbane said the district has a "messaging" problem as it tries to combat the anti-levy initiative from the local GOP group. She said the district might need to spend down its reserves before talking about cuts.
"Then it's going to be, 'you have all this money, and now you're hurting our kids,'" she said. "Or, 'you're cutting paychecks' or 'you're doing this,' the messaging is going to be the same, just on a different level."
At the same time, the district's hands are "tied behind its back" in some regards due to state law preventing school officials from advocating for school levies, Micko said. A pro-levy committee did raise money to advocate for the levy, but, Kilbane said it was "outspent."
Some districts have already made cuts and are now faced with the prospect of more cuts after levies failed in last week’s elections.
Springfield Local School District in Summit County hasn’t passed a new levy in more than two decades, which officials say has meant cutting back on programming. The district has been able to build back some non-core classes like arts and music thanks to careful financial planning, said Board of Education President Cynthia Frola. But the defeat of two levy renewals this election cycle - with one just two votes short of passing - could put those classes and at risk.
"I think it's devastating. And it's just like we took one step forward and now we're going to take two steps back," Frola said.
The official count of ballots hasn't been completed yet, which could result in pushing one of the two failed levies over the line, Frola added.
Elsewhere in Northeast Ohio, levies were voted down in both the Mogadore and Ravenna school districts. Both districts have been placed under a state of "fiscal caution" by the state, meant to alert school districts of impending financial challenges if things continue on their current course. Ravenna City School District hasn't had a levy approved since 2005, according to WKYC and already made cuts this school year, including ending busing for high school students and cutting 10 staff. Mogadore Local School District also cut back on busing and staff this year.
Officials at those school districts did not respond to a request for comment.
In general, Ohio residents vote more often on school levies than any other state due to the way state tax law and its school funding system works, one expert told Ideastream.
