BUHL, Idaho — Buhl School District is asking voters to approve a two-year, $650,000 levy on the May 20 ballot to fund essential operations including staffing, transportation and supplies.
If the levy fails, the district will need to make significant cuts beyond the three teaching positions already planned for elimination due to decreased enrollment.
"If we don't pass the levy, we're going to have to make some pretty significant cuts," said Superintendent Angie Oparnico.
The superintendent believes the district's size is advantageous for students and staff alike.
"We're big enough to offer things for kids and opportunities, but we're small enough where we can get to know the kids," Oparnico said.
The levy will appear on ballots for Twin Falls and Gooding County voters living in the Buhl Joint School District Zone.
While the district is already planning to eliminate three teaching positions due to enrollment declines, failure of the levy would force more drastic measures.
Typically, a levy of this amount would cost property owners approximately $56 per year per $100,000 of taxable property value. However, thanks to distributions from the Legislature's House Bill 292, which offsets levies, the financial impact will be substantially reduced.
"If we got the same amount that we got this year, the tax impact would be 24 cents per $100,000 dollars," Oparnico said.
Buhl is one of just a handful of Magic Valley school districts with a levy on the May 20 ballot. A similar levy failed in 2024 by just 5%.
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