Extra taxes that voters have agreed to pay to fund their schools could be continued "in perpetuity" unless voters themselves call for and end to the levy, under a bill that passed the House Taxes Committee late Tuesday night.
Rep. Mindy Greiling, DFL-Roseville, chairwoman of the K-12 Education Finance Division, said that budget cuts to cover the state deficit, and an uncertain general economy, require that school boards have the ability to extend funding voters have approved by earlier referenda. Such extensions would not only continued to excess levy but avoid the costs of staging another referendum, Greiling noted.
But the tax committee inserted a shutoff valve Tuesday night, adding a provision by which voters could override the school board's extension. If 30 percent of voters sign a petition to end the excess levy, the issue would go to a general vote on the following November Election Day.
The bill, which also requires the state to repay $1.8 billion it borrowed from schools to help cover the deficit and includes changes in teacher licensing, could go before the full House later this week.
