Levy supporters make real arguments. Here they are, stated fairly, with our answers.
Doesn’t a NO vote defund our schools?
No. A NO vote rejects this levy: a renewal at the $2.50 legal maximum, collecting $151.85 million from 2028 to 2030, with no accountability attached. The board can bring a smaller, accountable renewal back to voters in February 2027, before the new levy would begin collecting in 2028.
“But what about sports and electives?”
The Yes side says: The levy pays for all athletics, performing arts and extracurricular activities, about $5.8 million a year. Source: CVSD Levy FAQ.
That’s true, and we don’t dispute it. But the district decides what to fund first inside a $277.3 million General Fund. If the district chooses to cut sports before anything else, that’s a choice, not a necessity. A NO vote is a demand for a smaller, accountable renewal, not the end of the levy.
Costs went up. Doesn’t the district need more?
The Yes side says: From 2025 to 2026, utilities rose 9%, insurance 14%, and fuel 16%.
Those increases are real. But the General Fund budget grew 89% from 2014-15 to 2025-26, far faster than enrollment (about 11%). And staff salaries and benefits make up 85.1% of 2025-26 expenditures, so utilities, insurance and fuel are a small part of the total. Families face the same rising costs: the average Spokane County paycheck grew 5.3% from 2024 to 2025, while CVSD’s levy collections grew 32%. Sources: CVSD Budget & Finance; OSPI F-195 via Ballotpedia; CVSD; NCES; BLS QCEW; Spokane County Assessor.
The state cut its levy match. Isn’t that why the district needs the maximum?
The Yes side says: The state’s Local Effort Assistance (LEA) match collapsed.
It did fall, from $6.8 million (2020-21) to $1.4 million (2023-24), a drop of $5.4 million a year. Over roughly the same years the General Fund budget rose from $217 million (2021-22) to $277.3 million (2025-26). The lost match is real, but it’s a small part of a much larger increase. Sources: CVSD; CVSD Budget & Finance.
The rate is lower than it used to be. Why complain?
The Yes side says: The levy rate is lower than in 2018, when it was $3.56.
State law now caps this kind of levy at $2.50 per $1,000, and this levy sits at that cap. The dollars are what matter: $151.85 million over three years, rising 3.5% a year, on top of a total school tax rate of about $3.92 per $1,000 through 2030. And the last levy was estimated at $2.40 but collected $2.45 and then about $2.50. Sources: Spokesman-Review, July 31 & Sept. 15, 2026; CVSD Levy FAQ.
Battle Ground’s levy failed and they cut millions. Won’t that happen here?
The Yes side says: Battle Ground, Wash., cut about $14 million after a failed levy.
What gets cut, and in what order, is up to each district’s leadership. CVSD’s board can put a smaller, accountable renewal on the February 2027 ballot, before the new levy would begin collecting in 2028. A NO vote in November asks the district to do exactly that. [NEED SOURCE: Battle Ground figure]
Are you against teachers?
No. CVSD’s teachers and students are not the problem. Our concern is a district leadership that has grown the budget far faster than enrollment, drawn down its reserves, received state audit findings two years in a row, and now asks for the maximum legal rate with no accountability attached.
Where do your numbers come from?
Public records: Washington State Auditor reports, the district’s own budget documents, OSPI, NCES, and reporting from the Spokesman-Review and KREM. Every figure has a source label, and every source is listed on our Sources page.