The Akron Public Schools are pushing their 5.9 mill levy from the March to November ballot to give them more time to do some housekeeping.
Newly elected Board President Jason Haas tells AkronNewsNow.com that by having the primary in March it didn't give the APS enough time to take care of some important items within the district.
"By having the levy on the March ballot it does not give us enough time to conduct our contract negotiations which will be ongoing this year as well as negotiate our cuts which have to be made right now in order for us to be solvent heading into the next fiscal year."
Voters narrowly defeated a 5.5 mill levy for the district on the November ballot.
The same $22 million dollar deficit facing the Akron schools this past year has not changed in 2012 and that cuts will have to be made.
He (Haas) said confusion on the part of the State Legislature after redistricting led to the School Board's decision to push the levy to November.
"We thought the primary would be held in April, May, or possibly June," he said.
"When we voted in December, we voted thinking it was going to be later in the spring, and when we found out is was going to be held in March, we felt it didn't give us enough time to do some necessary things with our bargaining units."
Passage of a 5.9-mill levy will reduce that $22 million deficit to $16 million.
The district will be outlining where these cuts will be made over the next few weeks.
APS Superintendent David James said that having the additional time will better help the district deal with the issues before the November Election Day.
"It's less than 60 days til the March Primary, and one of the concerns I brought up with the Board is to communicate effectively with our voters and our parents and students," he said.
James said his State of the Schools address coming up will be a great vehicle used to address the APS levy and answer any questions voters may have.
Haas re-emphasized the importance of discussing the issue with the public as well as the parents.
"We want the city and the entire community to understand what it is we're doing and why, so they're informed as they possibly can be, because we need their support."
