Hot Springs to revote levy

Voters in the Hot Springs School District will be mailed ballots this week as they once again are asked to decide on a proposed levy.

The election is being rerun after results from a May 7 election - in which the $183,000 levy passed by three votes - were invalidated by a District Court judge when it was discovered that more than 125 absentee ballots were not mailed to registered voters.

Residents sponsored two separate forums for the public to learn more about the proposed levy. The final forum was Monday at the Lonepine Community Center, with the discussion led by Taylor Salmi, a Hot Springs graduate and the director of the Cabinet Mountain Cooperative, which provides services to several school districts in the area, including Hot Springs. Salmi on Monday told the nearly 50 community members in attendance that she was acting in the capacity of a community member and that the forums were in order to hear concerns from the community that could be relayed to the school board..

The school district, for the new October 2 levy election, has chosen to run an all-mail ballot election, instead of offering a polling place election. "We chose mail-in only to lessen the chance of errors," school board member Jen Christensen said at Monday's forum.

"The error was made, we can't go back and change it. The school has not denied that a mistake was made," Salmi said of the May 7 election issues. "We can only promise to do better going forward."

Salmi presented information on the Hot Springs school budget and talked about the school funding formula for the state, which she said is broken. "Schools have to rely on local taxpayers because the federal and state government are not funding schools." She said the governor's tax task force is proposing changes to the formula, which would benefit schools such as Hot Springs.

"One of the biggest things you can do as a taxpayer is get your neighbors to vote," Salmi encouraged, adding that she was one of the absentee voters who did not receive a ballot for the May election, so went and voted in person.

Salmi said the proposed levy is permanent. Christensen said that the school board is only going to levy the amount needed to run the school district. "We are going to need to use all of it to get out of the hole," she said, referring to the current deficit of the school's general fund, which sits at a negative balance of $189,573 for the 2024 budget year, according to Salmi's presentation. "The school district is very well aware there's a budget issue," Salmi stated. She also detailed the declining enrollment in the district, which received ANB funding based off average enrollment of 200 students in 2020 and 169 students in 2024.

Resident Tammy McAllister addressed enrollment changes. "We're very transient here in Hot Springs and that's why it's hard to budget based on enrollment."

Residents asked questions about one-time COVID funds received by the district. Christensen provided details and stated that a letter addressing the funding would be coming from the board.

Resident Scott Viegut said he was in favor of the levy if the school board could answer a list of specifc questions regarding spending at the school district. "I am very concerned that our school district is being operated at best to be charitable, sloppy and at worst, illegally," Viegut said Monday evening. "In my opinion as a concerned taxpayer and voter if we don't address the issues that are called out in black and white for all to see before giving more money in any form to the district, another levy request will be back in front of us again sooner rather than later."

Several teachers spoke in support of the levy on Monday. "My biggest concern is if we don't get the levy and have to combine classrooms," kindergarten teacher Josey Silva expressed. "The education of your kids is going to suffer."

Ballots for the Hot Springs levy election will need to be returned to the school by October 2.