For the second straight year, the Lawrence School District’s piece of the local property tax pie is expected to shrink.

While increases are forecast from both city and county officials, the property tax mill levy for Lawrence public schools is expected to decline, Supt. Randy Weseman said this week.

Work on the 2003-2004 district budget was nearing an end, he said, and it appeared the levy would decline anywhere from 1.8 mills to 3 mills. That would come after a decrease of 5.3 mills last year.

The superintendent said a decline in the district’s levy was possible because of continuing increases in the average property valuation across Douglas County and because the school board had been willing to authorize budget cuts.

The district’s preliminary budget requires a local levy of 48 mills, down from 49.8 mills a year ago. But a larger reduction of the levy may be possible, depending on how much is left in district accounts after the 2002-2003 books are closed, Weseman said.

“I think we’ve been pretty responsible to keep the levy stable,” Weseman said. “It’s meaningful to people.”

The Lawrence city commission is looking at a new budget that contains a 3.41 mill-levy increase. Douglas County officials are considering a 2.5 mill increase in the levy.

A mill is $1 in tax for every $1,000 in assessed valuation.

Meanwhile, Weseman said he would encourage the board to go no deeper than $1.7 million into a prioritized list of budget cuts.

¢See past school budget stories

There was interest among some board members to consider more spending reductions to bolster the district’s contingency fund. Board member Sue Morgan said the district should consider setting aside the legal maximum to provide a cushion against possible state education funding cutbacks during the next school year.

The district’s rainy day account contains $1.7 million, said Kathy Johnson, the district’s budget director.

She said the legal limit set by the state for a district the size of Lawrence’s was $1.9 million.

Weseman said his recommendation to the board would be to attempt to get through the next school year without additional budget cuts.

“I think we’re OK,” Weseman said. “We’re better off than a lot of districts.”

If the board agrees with his position, about four dozen assistant coaching jobs at the district’s junior high schools and high schools would be saved for another year.

Formal presentation of the district’s budget to the school board will be at 7 p.m. July 14 at district headquarters, 110 McDonald Drive.

A public hearing on the spending blueprint will be at 6:30 p.m. July 22 at district offices. Board action on the budget will follow the hearing.