In tough times, Inver Grove Heights makes a tough choice

They say local schools need the money. But this year, they say they can't even afford to ask for it.

In a painful decision Monday night that one board member said came after much "soul searching," the Inver Grove Heights school board decided not to ask voters for an increase in school funding this fall. Instead, the board approved a ballot question that will merely renew an existing levy.

The unanimous decision means the district, which cut more than $1 million from its 2008-2009 budget after a referendum failed last fall, will likely face another $1.2 million shortfall next year.

But school board members said they hope keeping the request to the bare minimum will increase the likelihood of its passage in tough economic times, and during a federal election year that will pack November's ballot.

"I'm not much of a gambler," said Lynette Stensgard, a school board member who said she wasn't willing to risk losing a levy renewal by asking for more money.

And even some parents who support increased school funding said they understand the board's logic. "With the economy the way it is, I'm not sure that's a bad choice," said Kerry Otteson, who has a daughter entering high school in Inver Grove Heights.

It's a tough decision that many school districts are facing as they analyze budgets for more than a year from now.

The first, as in Inver Grove Heights, would ask voters to approve operating money the district already receives -- about $7 million a year. The second would provide an extra $210 per pupil to open a new elementary school that will sit closed during the 2008-09 school year because the district doesn't have the money to operate it. The third question would ask voters for $40 per pupil, or more, to either lower class sizes, reinstate cut programs, or both.

The ballot question approved by the Inver Grove Heights school board will ask voters for a 10-year renewal of a levy that raises about $1.6 million a year, or $364 per pupil.

The school board considered putting three additional questions on the ballot that, if passed, would have raised an additional $400 per pupil and negated the need for cuts. But the economic slump and a busy presidential campaign season in which voters will be bombarded with political messages convinced the board that asking for more money would jeopardize their chances of getting anything.

"Anything beyond a renewal is going to be very difficult to pass this year," said Rep. Joe Atkins, DFL-Inver Grove Heights, who advised the board Monday night that asking for more could "doom" even the basic funding request.

Keep the message simple, he said. Send voters lots of mailings that explain how renewing the levy will allow the district to keep giving local kids a great education, and "sharpen your pencils," Atkins said.

That damage could come from a list of more than $1.3 million in possible reductions the district has already identified for the 2009-2010 school year. The list includes eliminating elementary band and middle school electives, slicing funding for extracurricular activities and reducing the district's custodial staff, which would curtail evening use of its buildings. At the high school, the district could increase class sizes or reduce the number of sections offered for classes in core subjects.

The board could avoid some of the cuts by tapping into the district's fund balance -- the pool of money in its annual budget that it doesn't spend. But relying too heavily on that rainy day fund could have consequences such as forcing the district to borrow money to get through the school year, said Bruce Rimstad, the district's business manager.

Monday's decision comes after a string of cuts totaling close to $5 million that the district has made since 2000, Superintendent Deirdre Wells said.

"We've been slicing and dicing," she said. "We're getting down to the bare bones."