By Rich Larson
Northfield residents will have a chance on Thursday to weigh in on whether the school board should renew the district’s operating levy without sending the question back to voters, a one-time option granted by the Minnesota Legislature in 2023.
The required public hearing will be held from 6 to 8pm in the Northfield School District Office Gymnasium at the former Longfellow School. Northfield Superintendent of Schools Dr. Matt Hillmann said the meeting is intended to gather public feedback before the board decides whether to act on the opportunity or place the levy on the November ballot.
The levy, originally approved by voters in 2017, expires in fiscal 2028 and, according to Dr. Hillmann it accounts for about $9 million a year, or roughly 13 percent of the district’s revenue.
Under the 2023 law, school boards may renew an existing operating levy one time by board resolution, so long as the renewal keeps the same terms previously approved by voters. Dr. Hillmann emphasized that Northfield is not considering a new tax increase, but rather a continuation of the existing levy under the same conditions, including the inflationary factor allowed by law.
“What we’re deciding right now,” he said, “is whether the board would use its statutory authority” to renew the levy “under the same conditions that the voters approved in 2017.”
District officials say using the authority could provide fiscal stability while sparing the district the cost and effort of running an election campaign for a measure that would simply extend an existing source of revenue.
Dr. Hillmann said lawmakers created the option after data showed that most levy renewals already pass. From 2016 to 2024, he said, 87 of 90 operating levy renewals statewide were approved.
At the March 19 meeting, Dr. Hillmann and Val Mertesdorf, the district’s director of finance, will give a presentation before residents break into smaller discussion groups with board members and administrators. The session will conclude with a public-comment period.
If the board chooses not to renew the levy by resolution, the question would go before voters in November. Dr. Hillmann said the county’s direct election charge is about $4,000, but the district typically spends $40,000 to $55,000 on communication, mailings and public notices, not including staff time.
Rich Larson is the owner and General Manager of KYMN Radio. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
