Mauston school leaders hope third referendum attempt will prevent district cuts, closure

A Juneau County school district will ask voters for a third time to approve a referendum needed to continue operating beyond the next two years.

The School District of Mauston will put a referendum on the Feb. 18 ballot asking voters to allow the district to exceed the state-imposed revenue limit by $1.75 million annually for the next four years. 

It’s the same amount that voters narrowly rejected during the November election, which failed by less than 2 percentage points. The community overwhelmingly rejected the district’s first referendum of $2.25 million last April.

Without the additional funding, district leaders said they will be unable to operate Mauston schools past the 2026-27 school year. The school board voted last month to consider dissolving the district over the lack of funding. 

The board also approved myriad budget cuts for next school year, including closing an elementary school and cutting all sports, clubs and field trips.

School board vice president Mike Zilisch said the group decided to bring the referendum back right away instead of waiting for the spring election in April. He said it hopes to prevent families and staff from leaving the district, which would further complicate the district’s budget projections.

“April is getting to that point where students and family are going to start looking at options for the next school year, along with staff,” Zilisch said. “We felt February was the most prudent (time) to get that through, to be able to give people enough time to prepare if, in fact, it doesn’t pass.”

District leaders say they have continued to battle misinformation about the budget, including some claims that the district does not need the additional funding and, more recently, accusations of mismanagement of funds.

But Superintendent Joel Heesch said his district is far from alone in their budget struggles. He said almost all of the state’s school districts have gone to referendum to cover increasing operating expenses.

“I find it hard to believe that 90 percent of the school districts in the state are overspending or misappropriating funds,” Heesch said. “I know that that’s not the case. So I would like people to be able to take a step back and see the root of the problem is not your local school district, it’s the funding formula that we have at the state (level).”

Heesch said state lawmakers have acknowledged to him that the state’s funding formula isn’t working. But he said there appears to be little interest in fixing the system to help schools keep pace with rising costs.

If the February referendum fails, Heesch said the district will not be able to get another question on the April ballot. He said they will continue to answer the community’s questions and offer public listening sessions ahead of the next vote to try to gain more support.