‘It’s never failed to pass’: School District 25 hoping levy passes again

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI/KIDK) - Since 1961, when it was put in place, the Pocatello-Chubbuck School District's school plant facilities levy has never failed to pass. This year, the district is hoping to keep the streak alive.

The levy, which comes to a vote every ten years, helps the school district with security, safety, equipment and the upkeep and maintenance of nearly $250 million in assets, according to Courtney Fisher, the district's communications director.

"Those assets include 28 buildings, 1.6 million square feet of building space, 205 acres of grass, 16 miles of sidewalks, so you can see that this levy is all-encompassing and very comprehensive of the entire school district," she said.

Though failure is not part of the levy's past, Fisher says it would be a major loss to the district if it failed, decreasing the number of programs the district can offer and hurting their ability to maintain and improve facilities.

"The school plant facilities levy makes up about 6-7% of the school district's annual budget," Fisher said. "So, if you consider that -- just even considering your own household budget and having to trim 6-7% -- based on those cuts that you have to make, yes, it would have a huge impact.”

If passed, the levy would cost homeowners about $141 per $100,000 of taxable value, an increase of about $14 per year or $1.10 per month.

The vote will be on March 10. Early voting began yesterday and will run through March 6.

More information about the levy can be found here.