The caps on capital outlay appear as though they’ll remain in place for another year.

 

House members voted 33-35 on House Bill 1139, which repeals the $2,800 cap on the Capital Outlay fund and permits a school district to levy up to $3 per $1,000 of valuation, annually, on Tuesday (2-19), and a vote to reconsider on Wednesday afternoon (2-20) fell two votes short of earning the needed majority with a 34-31 vote.

 

HB 1139 was amended to include the annual levy setting of up to $3 per $1,000 of valuation in House Education, where it was passed on an 11-3 vote.

 

The changes to the Capital Outlay fund, including the establishment of a 3 percent or inflation growth cap and implementation of an alternative maximum capital outlay cap imposed on a per-student basis of $2,800 per-student, were made during the 2016 legislative session.

 

“We have been very patient to…see what some of the impacts that evolved,” ASBSD Executive Director Wade Pogany told House Education committee members as it related to the changes applied three years ago, adding most school districts are “going to be negatively impacted” by the growth caps.

 

“Leave it with the school boards to determine what happens in their school district.”

 

Rep. Tim Goodwin said the bill “removes tax payer protections” due to the removal of the growth and per-student caps.

 

Rep. Spencer Gosch, the bill’s prime sponsor, cited the discretion of school boards, to make fiscally responsible decisions that best benefit their district and community would counteract concerns of over-taxation.

 

“The locally elected officials are the ones living in the area,” Rep. Gosch told fellow Representatives during the bill’s debate on the House floor. “They should be the ones that make the decision.”

 

“Let’s do what’s right for our local school districts.”

 

For updates on legislative session, check the ASBSD Blog, Twitter feed, Facebook page and Bill Tracker.