Cardinal voters to decide on extending levy

By Andy Hallman, The Union

ELDON - Residents in the Cardinal Community School District will go to the polls Tuesday to vote on extending a physical plant and equipment levy another 10 years.

The property tax levy is $1.34 per $1,000 of assessed valuation. Residents of the district have been paying a physical plant and equipment levy for about 20 years.

The tax must be renewed every 10 years to stay on the books.

The school district put this levy up for a vote in March 2020, more than a year before the tax was to expire at the end of fiscal year 2020-2021. Voters narrowly rejected the extension, with 52 percent voting against.

Cardinal Superintendent Joel Pedersen said the levy is important to the school district, and that if it goes away, it will put Cardinal in a difficult position compared to its neighbors. He said the district would lose about $300 per student without the PPEL.

During the past 10 years, Cardinal has used the PPEL to fund a variety of programs. These have ranged from student computers to remodeling music rooms to school buses. The district was able to replace the roof of the high school common area and build a playground at the elementary school with money from the PPEL.