By Mackenezi Klemann
Indiana Capital Chronicle

The Indiana Coalition for Public Education anticipates that as many as 100 public school districts could ask voters for new money through local property tax referendums this fall.

The referendum campaigns mark a major shift in how public schools are funded and sustained, according to ICPE, which hosted a webinar on Wednesday for parents, teachers and public school advocates to support their local referendums.

This shift is partly due to last year’s property tax reform measure, Senate Enrolled Act 1, which ICPE estimates will cost public schools $744 million through 2028. 

The greatest losses are expected in 2028, at a projected cost of $336 million.

Schools can seek referendums to pay for construction, operating expenses or school security.

The bill restricts school corporation referendums to general elections in even years to protect voters from unexpected tax increases approved in low-turnout elections, especially if there are no other questions or candidates on the ballot to catch voters’ attention.

This in turn limits how often schools can go to voters for new revenue, at a time when superintendents say they are likely to consider referendums to keep their districts afloat.

Districts that don’t seek referendums this year won’t get the chance to do so until November 2028.

Prior to the introduction of property tax caps in 2008, school corporations could only seek new property tax revenue through a petition and remonstrance process, said Joel Hand, general counsel, lobbyist and co-founder of ICPE. 

Lawmakers agreed the state would shoulder a greater share of K-12 tuition support to offset property tax caps, but funding to public schools is increasingly diverted to private school vouchers, charter schools, career scholarships and education savings accounts, Hand said.

Now, school districts are preparing to ask voters for support to offset reductions in property tax revenue, with only a 2% increase in K-12 funding provided in last year’s biennial budget.

“When you adjust for inflation, we are actually spending at least $100 less per student now than we did 16 years ago, and that equates to about a 7% reduction in per pupil funding for public school students from the 2010-2011 school year until today,” Hand said.

Public appetite for referendums is another question.

Emily Callahan, superintendent of Brown County Schools in rural southern Indiana, told the panel her district narrowly lost an operating referendum renewal by 333 votes in November 2022.

“It was eight pennies,” Callahan said, referring to the increased cost per $100 assessed value. “That’s how much the referendum was: Eight pennies.”

The district won when it returned to voters with a 12-cent operating referendum two years later, she said.

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The Indiana Capital Chronicle is an independent, nonprofit news organization dedicated to giving Hoosiers a comprehensive look inside state government, policy and elections. The site combines daily coverage with in-depth scrutiny, political awareness and insightful commentary.

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