Opposition to a Third Consecutive School Tax Increase Above 2%

I do not support a third consecutive year of school-tax increases above 2% when the district’s own financial records show that millions of dollars remain unused at the end of each fiscal year and are then transferred into Capital Reserve.

In 2018, taxpayers were told that the $114.875 million referendum would have “zero tax impact on the debt portion of the budget.” Nevertheless, WW-P’s bonded debt increased from $40.475 million in 2018 to $142.620 million in 2020. As of June 30, 2025, bonded debt remained at $100.885 million—approximately $60.4 million higher than before the referendum.

During fiscal year 2025 alone, WW-P paid approximately $11.863 million in bond principal and interest. The district transferred $10.023 million from Capital Reserve to the Debt Service Fund to help make those payments.

Capital Reserve is then replenished with General Fund resources. During fiscal year 2025, WW-P deposited approximately $14.74 million into Capital Reserve, including a $4.5 million year-end transfer. The account finished the year with a balance of approximately $25.5 million. In June 2026, the Board authorized another transfer of up to $5 million of unused General Fund money into Capital Reserve.

This creates an unacceptable cycle:

• Taxes are increased by more than 2%, supposedly because the district cannot absorb rising operating costs.
• Millions of dollars remain unused at the end of the year.
• That money is transferred into Capital Reserve.
• Capital Reserve is then used to pay debt.
• Taxpayers are told the following year that another tax increase above 2% is necessary.

This raises a fundamental question: If the district repeatedly finishes the year with millions of dollars available to transfer into Capital Reserve, why does it continue imposing tax increases above 2%?

Every dollar moved into Capital Reserve is a dollar that was not used for health insurance, student programs, staffing, properly fitted athletic equipment or tax relief. The district cannot continue blaming health-insurance costs while simultaneously generating multimillion-dollar year-end surpluses and moving those funds into an account used, in part, to service debt.

I am asking the Board to commit now that the 2026–27 tax levy will not increase by more than 2%.

Before considering any increase above 2%, the district must publicly disclose:

1. The exact amount transferred from the General Fund into Capital Reserve in June 2026—not merely the authorized “up to $5 million.”
2. The specific budget lines that generated the unused money.
3. The amount of health-insurance funding budgeted versus actually spent during 2025–26.
4. The total Capital Reserve balance after the June 2026 transfer.
5. The amount of Capital Reserve that will be used for debt service and capital projects during 2026–27.
6. Why available General Fund money was transferred into Capital Reserve instead of being used to reduce the subsequent tax levy.

Taxpayers should not be treated as an unlimited source of revenue while the district repeatedly overbudgets expenses, transfers the resulting unused money into reserves and then returns the following year requesting another exceptional tax increase.

Two consecutive increases above 2% were already more than enough. A third year is neither reasonable nor justified without full transparency regarding the district’s surpluses, reserves and debt obligations.

Please respond to each question individually and provide the supporting financial schedules and Board resolutions. General statements about health-insurance pressures or fiscal responsibility will not answer these concerns.

Sincerely,

Veronica Mehno