The revenue losses are already happening and will grow every year through 2031, reaching a projected $1.6 million annual shortfall. Because the next opportunity to place a referendum on the ballot isn’t until 2028, waiting risks real cuts to the 50+ teaching positions and support staff currently funded by the referendum in the meantime.

Because this referendum replaces lost revenue rather than growing it, the added cost pressure is expected to be minor compared to a typical new tax. Keeping schools strong also helps stabilize property values and community appeal over time, which benefits renters and homeowners alike by keeping West Lafayette a desirable place to live.

The district has already found $448,000 in annual savings through staffing efficiency, attrition-based hiring, and renegotiated service contracts. Referendum funds currently pay the salaries and benefits of more than 50 teachers, plus transportation and maintenance staff, so further cuts beyond what’s already been done would mean losing people and programs, not trimming waste.

In a recent independent survey of 400 residents, 77% gave the district’s financial management an A or B, up from 69% just three years earlier. That trust is backed by real results, including the $448,000 in annual efficiencies already achieved without cutting essential programs.

The $956 figure comes from state-mandated ballot language designed to show the maximum possible rate, not the district’s actual plan. Because West Lafayette already has a voter-approved referendum in place, that homeowner is already paying close to $700 a year toward it, so the real year-over-year change from this vote is expected to be small, and the board has committed to only levying what’s needed to replace lost revenue.

SEA 1 is a state law, but the legislature left the fix up to local voters through referendums like this one. A yes vote keeps that decision in West Lafayette’s hands rather than letting the state’s funding cuts force staff and program reductions here, and dozens of other Indiana districts are facing the same choice this November.

Strong schools raise property values and are consistently cited as one of the top factors businesses and families weigh when choosing where to locate. A well-funded district strengthens the whole community’s tax base and home values, not just families with kids currently enrolled.

This referendum isn’t about raising revenue, it’s about replacing funds the district is already losing to a new state law (SEA 1), which is cutting the taxable value of properties statewide and shrinking what the current tax rate brings in. For most homeowners, the actual change is expected to be minimal: taxes may stay flat, dip slightly, or rise only a few dollars a year, not a new financial burden layered on top of what you already pay.