The Geary USD 475 Board of Education will be asked to delay the bond issue election for a proposed new Junction City High School until August 1. The election had been scheduled for May 9th.

The federal heavy impact aid payment due to be received by USD 475 this month to help pay for the high school project is now not expected to arrive until summer, meaning it’s necessary to reschedule the bond issue election. Approval of a bond issue by local voters is necessary so the school district can also obtain state aid to be used with the federal impact aid money to pay for the new school project.

Superintendent Dr. Corbin Witt will make the recommendation on the election to the school board at their April meeting.

The federal government is currently operating under a continuing resolution, and final action has not been taken on a budget. Witt just returned from a trip to Washington D.C. “The officials do not feel that the federal government is probably going to deal with the budget until that runs out, which is not until April.” So what they’ve told us is that we will not get our heavy impact aid payment in March, that it will most likely come this summer.”

August 1st is also the date for primary elections in the city commission, city council and school board races in Kansas.

The plan for funding the proposed new high school project calls for use of a combination of state and federal aid. The state aid has been recommended for approval by the Kansas State Board of Education, but in order for the district to obtain that funding local voters would have to approve a bond issue in an election.  There would be no increase in the local property tax levy to help pay for the new high school.