MPS board calls to explore referendum, votes to set new calendar

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Board members for Milwaukee Public Schools voted Thursday night to have the district explore asking taxpayers for more money in an April referendum.

The board cited state aid that hasn't kept up with inflation combined with caps state law puts on how much districts can generate from property taxes.

There aren't yet any details about how much MPS would be seeking in a referendum, which would be a request for voters' permission to raise that property tax limit.

"It's a first step," Board member Marcela Garcia said after the meeting. "It's really an opportunity for us to do a little bit of digging as to what is the possibility of us doing that."

Under the resolution, district administrators will outline what a referendum could look like. The board then expects to vote in January on whether it'll put the question to voters on the April ballot.

While MPS has a current budget of $1.5 billion, the district contends it would have another $210 million if the state's school aid formula kept up with inflation. It cited a memo Sen. LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee) received last January from the Legislature's nonpartisan Fiscal Bureau.

Board member Missy Zombor said seeking additional dollars was a far more preferable option than making cuts.

She noted other districts have had to explore closing schools to close budget gaps. That list includes Kenosha and Wauwatosa.

"Shuttering schools, overcrowding classrooms, eliminating specialty programs, cutting transportation and balancing a budget on the backs of teachers are not sound solutions to addressing a budget crisis," Zombor said.

Rich Steenwyk, an MPS parent of three, and the only member of the public to speak on the matter Thursday, cautioned the timing might doom a referendum. He noted a new 2% city sales tax takes effect in January, along with Milwaukee County's sales tax jumping from 0.5% to 0.9%.

"We'll be asking the voters for their opinion on more of their money in Spring 2024, right after they come off the heels of dealing with tax increases in Milwaukee," Steenwyk said.

Zombor, MPS Board President Marva Herndon and Superintendent Keith Posely held a press conference on Friday and discussed the referendum push. 

To say that the state gave our students crumbs would be generous. The state funding formula is broken, and does not sustain the schools our students deserve," Zombor said at a news conference Friday morning.

MPS says they need help from taxpayers in 2024, as state aid hasn't kept up with inflation for more than fifteen years.

"When we did that referendum four years ago, the forecast was we would at least see something that's trying to keep pace with inflation, and when that didn't happen, we're now in the situation we are, frankly like other, some other districts have been," explained legislative policy manager, Chris Thiel.

Superintendent Keith Posley says the recommendation will be made with help from a public survey that's now available to residents on the district's website.

New Calendar Coming

The board also approved a measure shifting the district's schools to a single calendar. Currently, some schools begin in mid-August while others start their year after Labor Day.

The new calendar will have all MPS schools start on September 3 next year; that's the Tuesday after Labor Day. The district will dismiss all students for the summer on June 13.

MPS cited a survey of nearly 11,000 parents, district workers and city residents when settling on the new calendar.

41% of the respondents said they preferred a traditional calendar with school starting after Labor Day. 31% said they backed a hybrid option in which schools would start in late August while 28% opted for all schools to begin on the early start calendar.

Currently, MPS high schools, middle schools and some elementary schools use the early start calendar.

Supporters of putting all schools on the traditional calendar said that would minimize the number of days where school is held in extreme heat.

MPS has had to cancel classes in recent years because of heat. The district has faced criticism for not using more of the $770 million it's gotten in federal pandemic aid to upgrade the HVAC systems in more buildings. 44% of the district's schools don't have air conditioning.