Vote for Issaquah levies

Sammamish Review – 02/05/2014

In response to the Jan. 22 editorial, “Vote Yes for all Measures,” I wanted to extend my support and encourage others to vote yes for the three Issaquah School District levies. As a parent of two children in the district, and as someone who volunteers and substitutes in the Issaquah School District, I want to make sure everyone knows how important it is to vote yes for this funding.

There are three levies on the ballot Feb. 11. The first is a maintenance and operations levy. This levy provides 21 percent of the Issaquah School District operating budget (staff salaries, books, heat and light, fuel for buses, and building maintenance). Our taxes in Washington only provide 60.8 percent of the total budget for the district; federal funds account for 3.9 percent of the budget, tuition and fees (13.1 percent) and other funds (0.3 percent). Even with the levy dollars, Issaquah schools only rank 257th out of 295 school districts in the state in per student funding. Therefore, it is critical to our schools to pass this levy if we want to provide our children with a quality education.

The second levy is a school bus levy that will replace old buses with new, more efficient models that align with the state’s safety standards and replacement cycle. Fuel savings and lower maintenance costs mean that more money can go into the classroom to provide quality education for our children.

The third levy is a capital levy that pays for the classroom technology needs and critical repairs of buildings throughout the district. Washington state provides zero dollars of funding for technology. Our schools depend on local levy money and community funding for our classroom technology funding.

Please vote yes for all three Issaquah School District levies on February 11.

Theresa Larsen

Sammamish