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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (April 18, 2019)
WHAT ‘NO’ LOOKS LIKE November 2014 was the last time the 4J levy was on the ballot, and it won overwhelmingly: 75 percent of voters supported it. You could assume that the levy would pass in 2019. However, as the 2016 election has indicated, political wisdom can’t predict the future. Sure, not renewing the levy could save a few bucks. Since it’s not an increase, the levy would continue to cost property owners $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed value. If the levy weren’t to be renewed by Eugene voters, it could be tragic for local education. The school district could experience an increase in class sizes due to layoffs. “We’d be looking at significant layoffs in this district,” says Tad Shannon, Eugene Education Association president. “It would be a disaster.” The district would have to chop about 9 percent from the budget, which is about 161 teachers, says 4J board member and former Eugene mayor Jim Torrey. If the levy isn’t renewed, though, it doesn’t necessarily mean that all of those teachers would lose their jobs. “You’re going to have counselors, educational assistants, mental health staff that are going to be impacted,” Torrey says. “We would end up cutting some areas of administrative.” Cutting 9 percent would look like 10 years ago when 4J cut $22 million out of the district’s budget, he adds. TAD SHANNON, PRESIDENT OF EUGENE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION “We closed schools, we merged schools,” he says. 4J board member and campaign co-chair Anne Marie Levis says she doesn’t know what she’d do if it doesn’t pass. “I never plan for the worst,” she says. “If we have to, we could put it on the ballot in November. But I believe in the Eugene voters and I believe in them investing in schools.” DESPERATE MEASURES At first, it might make sense to harbor some resentment at 4J for asking to continue the levy after asking voters to increase property taxes in November 2018. A levy and a bond, though, are two different methods of raising money. The bond was necessary for the district to build a new North Eugene High School, for example. But the school district can’t use any of that money on staff. “This represents bodies,” Shannon says of the levy. “This is for the people in the classroom. We have very high ratios for nurses to students. Like, one to almost 2,000 — almost double the recommended ratio.” He adds that although voters overwhelmingly supported the bond measure in 2018, renewing the levy is necessary to staff a new North Eugene High School. And, not to discount the importance of new school One Day Only // April 20th Everything is 20% off! Free gift bags to the first 50 customers Commit to Be Fit! $1 pre-rolls $10 grams of Live Resin $6 50mg edibles plus bonus flower deals 30% off Gaia’s Ganja Garden & Cannassentials Discounts cannot be combined. Junction City, OR $1 from every sale of extract benefits S.A.R.A.’s Treasures Cat Rescue www.greenhealtheugene.com 607 Hwy 99 N in Eugene Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug. For use only by adults 21+ years of age and older. Keep out of reach of children. E U G E N E W E E K LY . C O M (541) 343-3314 www.oakwayfit.com A P R I L 1 8 , 2 0 1 9 13
