Granite Falls podcast explains levies, bonds and local tax impact

Josh Middleton, superintendent of Granite Falls School District, and Marshall Cruz, the district’s director of finance and operations, used a recent episode of the district’s Money Matters Monday podcast to explain how levies and bonds work and what they mean for local taxpayers.

Marshall Cruz said levies and bonds ‘‘are a way for school districts to raise additional money to help pay for things that the state doesn’t pay for.’’ He described levies as short-term, relatively smaller measures that support day-to-day operations, and bonds as larger, long-term measures used for major capital projects. ‘‘Levies are for learning and bonds are for building,’’ Cruz said.

The district maintains two ongoing levies: a maintenance-and-operations (M&O) levy, which feeds the general fund and covers items the state funding model (the ‘‘prototypical’’ model) does not fully fund—such as additional teachers, paraeducators, transportation, extracurriculars and nursing beyond the state-provided amount—and a capital projects levy, used for smaller capital purchases and repairs like Chromebooks, projectors or a small roof or boiler replacement.

Cruz said Granite Falls budgets roughly $750,000 in its capital projects levy each year and typically splits that about 50/50 between technology for students and staff and small emergency capital projects.

On elections and thresholds, Cruz explained that the district chooses to ask voters to renew levies every four years (three-year levies are possible) and that levies require a simple majority to pass: ‘‘It takes 50% plus 1.’’ Bonds, by contrast, require a 60% plus 1 supermajority in Washington state, reflecting the higher dollar amounts and longer payback periods bonds entail.

Cruz described the district’s current bond portfolio: two bonds (about $12 million combined) that funded improvements five years ago—STEM building work at the middle school, locker rooms, additional stadium seating and security upgrades—and a separate bond used to build the high school roughly 15 to 16 years ago that is being paid off over a 20-year schedule. He said the high-school bond will drop off next year, which will reduce the bond portion of the district tax rate by roughly half and translate to an estimated tax decrease ‘‘probably 60¢ per every $1,000 of assessed value.’’

Discussing broader election trends, Cruz said the February 13 ballot cycle saw many levies statewide and that ‘‘probably somewhere around 90% of them passed.’’ By contrast, he said 21 bonds were on the ballot and about seven passed—approximately one-third—reflecting both the higher 60% threshold and the size of requests. Cruz pointed to regional examples: Edmonds’ large bond passed with roughly 65% approval while bond measures in Arlington and Sultan did not pass.

Middleton and Cruz closed by inviting listener questions for follow-up episodes on levies, bonds, the general fund and the prototypical funding model.

The district did not announce any immediate plans to place a new bond on the ballot; Middleton said the facilities master plan and demographic study indicate future growth and that ‘‘at some point in the future... the board [could] go to the community again,’’ but no timeline or proposal was provided.