Salem-Keizer Public Schools staff are researching whether to ask voters to approve a local-option levy, Superintendent Andrea Castañeda told school board members at their annual retreat Saturday.
After a year of rolling budget cuts and a mass layoff, finances are looking “rosier” at the district, Castañeda said.
“People need to hear at the outset that this is not another year of reductions,” she said. “We did what we had to do. This is a year of settling and planning our recovery.”
Still, the district can’t make improvements the community has asked for, such reducing class sizes and restoring cut programs, without additional revenue streams, Castañeda said.
“Local option levy funding is the only avenue I see to try for class-size reduction,” she said.
A local-option levy, which is an additional tax paid by property owners, could be on the ballot as soon as the May 20, 2025, election, or board members could aim for a later election, she said.
