Revenue shortfall mystery?

School Revenue ‘Shortfall’ raises concerns?

The Kiowa C2 school board recently reported a “Loss of revenue from an anticipated revenue source has caused a “negative” financial issue.”1 The ‘anticipated revenue source’ is not divulged so we are not being told if it is a federal, state or a local source of taxation that is below what was hoped for by the school board.  It would be better if the board and superintendent were more transparent about our tax revenue.  The school board will be attempting to raise our taxes yet again for the fourth straight year to build a new school as the superintendent explained last year that he doesn’t intend to go 0-4 on tax increases no matter that the voters have year after year expressed their disapproval of a monstrous tax increase on the citizens of the district!

It is worth mentioning that the school board is required by the state to continually raise the school tax mill levy by one mill annually for the next 3 years until it reaches 27 mills!  So property and business taxes are baked in the school taxation cake for at least several more years.  The school board president has previously mentioned that the school tax we pay must be sent to the state for them to redistribute back to the school district.  School taxes are not county taxes and the county commissioners have no control over that taxation.  There is almost no local control over revenue for the school district except for debt bond tax increases.  The school board never proposes a school tax decrease even though the district has no current bonded debt, i.e. the school is debt free and has been for a while.

The school district has $3 million in their bank accounts yet they have a ‘revenue shortfall’ for an unknown reason.  Annual spending per pupil continues to rise rapidly and is currently $17,500!  That is amazing isn’t it?  The school is going for broke evidently.  With the state totally in control of all district spending and not the school board it seems that the school board is not really accountable to the district taxpayers and they don’t seem to mind spending our tax dollars to advertise and promote a big school debt bond that will burden us with a 25-year additional tax increase of at least 50% in school taxes!  The board is unresponsive to those who don’t agree with their higher tax proposals referring previously to those or us voting against massive tax increases as “uneducated and uninformed.”  I say no thanks school board to any new tax.

The new building the school board has built at a cost of over $3/4 million within inches of the dreaded FEMA flood zone to care for 52 pre-kindergarten children ranging in age from diapers-5 years old had a leaky roof and needs more equipment.  There are 3 non-English speaking children in the PK that are probably children of illegal aliens I guess.  They also get a free ride on tax payer dimes.  Never mind that a notable top PK research study has  found “A statewide public pre-K program, taught by licensed teachers, housed in public schools, had a measurable and statistically significant negative effect on the childrenin this study.”2 Does the school board consider this study as relevant?

May 5, 2025

1Ranchland News, May1, 2025, p.8.

2NPR, Feb. 10, 2022 A top researcher says it's time to rethink our entire approach to preschool