This election cycle, Fountain Hills residents are being asked to weigh in on a potential district additional assistance budget override (formerly known as capital outlay override) for Fountain Hills Unified School District.

The override would provide the district with $750,000 (or 10 percent of the district’s revenue control limit, if it is lesser) for the 2015-16 academic year. Furthermore, if approved, this override would continue for the next six school years.

The current additional assistance budget override was first approved in 1999 and has been consistently renewed by Fountain Hills voters in the years that followed.

Registered voters have likely already received background information concerning the election in the mail, which is where ballots will also arrive, as this is exclusively a mail-in ballot.

“Election Day” is Tuesday, Nov. 4.

In the information pamphlet, Maricopa County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Donald D. Covey explains that Arizona law “places restrictions on how much a school district may spend in each fiscal year without procuring explicit approval of the district’s voters in an election.”

According to Covey, the purpose of this election is for voters to voice their opinion on whether the district should operate within its current budget or be allowed to exceed the limitation through tax dollars.

As this is a renewal of an existing override, there would be no increase to current taxes. If the election fails, however, taxes would be adjusted accordingly.

Specifically, the ballot will ask voters if they wish to “authorize the Fountain Hills Unified School District Governing Board to adopt a budget which includes an amount for capital purposes that exceeds its district additional assistance budget limit…”

A vote of yes would grant FHUSD the continuation of $750,000 annually, with a no vote bringing that funding to an end.

For the 2015-16 budget year, two key areas will receive the greatest chunk of the total sum.

A total of $250,000 is cited for technology upgrades (student computers and instructional software) with another $250,000 going to “textbooks and on-line resources.”

The override tax rate is estimated at $0.1764. For homeowners with a property assessed at $272,250, that would mean an estimated tax amount of about $48.20. For a home valued at $488,842, the estimated tax amount would be $163.84.

To reiterate, this is a continuation of a previous override and does not represent new tax dollars.

In the voter information pamphlets, FHUSD provided a statement explaining the need for the additional assistance budget override election, saying that it would allow the local district to pay for capital needs not met by the current budget.

“School funding in Arizona is set by a statutory formula and in recent years, due to state budget deficits, funding to public schools has been cut,” reads the statement.

“This includes cuts to the capital budget that provides funding for things such as textbooks, student computers and related technology, furniture, building improvements and pupil transportation vehicles.”

Look for the 2014 ballot in the mail. They must be received by Nov. 4 to be counted. Election organizers encourage voters to get their ballots in the mail by Oct. 31 to ensure they are counted. Ballots may also be dropped off at Town Hall through election day.

Bonds/M&O

In 2013, local voters approved both a district bond package and a maintenance and operations override, which provide funds for completely different purposes.

The bond package, totaling $8 million, was designed to provide renovation and upkeep of all existing district facilities. Such items include security renovations, playground equipment, the synthetic field upgrade, shade structures, etc.

The maintenance and operations override amounted to $1.2 million for FHUSD, benefiting teacher salaries, full-day free kindergarten, teacher aides and professional development.

As far as how these funds interconnect, it can be broadly broken down as: Bonds create and support the physical district structures, the maintenance and operations override support the teachers and programs within those structures, and the additional assistance budget override (being voted on this year) provides educational tools and equipment within district sites.