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School referendums on Wisconsin ballots total over $1 billion

Posted at 9:41 AM, Apr 01, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-01 11:57:14-04

Forty-nine school districts across Wisconsin posted a total of 59 referendum questions on Tuesday's ballot.

In all, they're seeking a staggering total of $1,193,321,500 in new taxes.

After checking, double-checking and crunching all the numbers from the Department of Public Instruction database, the biggest ask statewide is Sun Prairie, near Madison.

School leaders want to build a new high school and are asking for $164 million.

In our area, local schools want more than $300 million in new taxes.

In Fond du Lac, officials are seeking $100 million for capital maintenance and improvement projects.

In Shorewood, leaders would like $65 million for security upgrades and other renovations across the district.

West Bend officials are seeking $47 million for a new elementary school and major upgrades at the high schools.

Kettle Moraine School District is asking voters to overspend revenue limits by nearly $6 million a year into 2024 at a cost of nearly $30 million.

Voters there just five years ago approved a referendum of nearly $50 million for district-wide improvements.

Seeking millions in new school taxes is not an aberration — it is a continuing trend. Just five months ago, Wisconsin voters approved nearly $1.4 billion in school referendums in the fall election.