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What the LPOSD won’t tell you and never wants you to know.

LPOSD routinely calls its levy, which it runs every two years, a “replacement supplemental levy” to emphasize that it merely replaces the existing two-year levy. Except it becomes more “plus-size” every time it’s run.

Calling this a ”replacement levy” is misleading at best.

At 49 percent more since 2017, this year’s levy no longer qualifies as “plus-size” but crosses the boundary into obese.

LPOSD’s misleading message is that the levy is “for the kids” and whitewashes the tax increase as minimal. That has always been their message for every one of their levies going back many years. In fact, only 16 percent of this proposed levy is “for the kids”

Currently, $6.92 a month is the amount they list as the oh-so-small increase you’ll see if you own a home valued at $250K with homeowner’s exemption. But multiplied by 12 that’s $83.04 a year, every year, forever. Remember also that it comes on top of the 2017 levy, which was soft-peddled as only 2 percent more than the 2015 levy. That’s 2 percent you are also paying every year, forever. This is in addition to all previous levies that have passed. Would you call this excessive?

Keep in mind that 84 percent of this levy feeds the salaries of current and retired employees. Meanwhile, kids are holding fundraisers for extracurricular activities and you the parents are buying classroom supplies that the district won’t provide.

LPOSD also has in the works since last summer the whopping $39 million levy proposal you have all been waiting for. They will tax you out of your home if you let this cumulative levy pass.

You work hard for your paycheck. You have a budget for your household and you stick to it. Make LPOSD live within a budget mindful of you, the taxpayer. You can stop feeding the predatory appetite of LPOSD by voting no on March 12. It will force LPOSD to go back to the drawing board and come up with a more reasonable levy.

RICK JOHNSON

Sandpoint