Judge makes ruling on District 91 levy

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) - An Ada County judge has deemed a recent levy from Idaho Falls School District 91 is illegal.

This means the levy is void, and the levy will not be collected.

This levy was passed with 70% in favor back in May.

"When it went to the State Tax Commission for approval, then they said, 'no, you have to expire the prior levy,' Bonneville County Prosecuting Attorney Randy Neal said. "There was already a levy in place the primary issue here when one is already in place is that it can't go over 10 years. So when they pass this levy, a second levy that was a levy that would go for another ten years. So you basically had a period of time that would have exceeded the cap of ten years."

Neal says the good news for the tax patrons of District 91 is that no tax will be collected. 

"We are very disappointed in the court's ruling," D91 Public Information Officer Margaret Wimborne said. "D91's parents and patrons clearly supported this levy to address our ongoing facilities issues."

She said the board of trustees will meet soon to discuss next steps.

"Our board of trustees will be meeting soon to discuss the next steps and decide how they're going to move forward. We'll be sharing those updates with our parents and patrons as we move forward. The district, the trustees, and our board are committed to addressing our facilities issues and ensuring that every student in District 91 can learn in an environment that is safe and meets their needs," Wimborne said.

Neal added that they do have a few options in place as they figure out those next steps.

"They have some options to either amend the current levy if they wanted to go that route, but they have to stay within that ten-year time period. Or they can even go for a traditional bond that the bond requires a higher approval percentage," Neal said.

The next school board meeting is December 12th. Although the board may call a special meeting to discuss the issue sooner than that.