School funding at the state level is a work in progress. In 2018, after the McCleary decision, state legislators changed property taxes with the intent of fully funding basic education and lowering local school taxes, not for the purpose of eliminating local school levies.
The state increased what it collects statewide in property taxes for basic education, and initially capped what school districts could collect locally at $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value. State and district leaders quickly realized the local rate limit was too low in many parts of the state. Less than one year later the cap was raised to $2.50.
Although the rate was increased, Snohomish school leaders stayed true to their request to local voters, keeping the local Educational Programs and Operations Levy at the original $1.50 rate. As a result, they reduced some programs and the district’s fund balance (savings account) has steadily dwindled as it was used to balance the books. In recent months, federal pandemic relief funds have also helped fill some of the gap, but those funds are not expected to continue much longer.
The McCleary decision also regionalized state revenue amounts. Those districts located in areas where the costs of living were higher received more revenue – up to 124% more of the base dollars. Snohomish was one of those districts but, unfortunately, the state is now going through a reduction of this extra revenue. However, the cost of living in our area is not declining. We are now in the second of three years of de-regionalization that will ultimately reduce state dollars to Snohomish schools by 6% or about $5 million per year.
The reality is state funding still falls short — in Snohomish more than 12% short — of paying for the full and rich learning experience in safe and secure schools our almost 9,300 students currently enjoy due to local levies.