Front Page

CCISD seeks millage replacement

Request on November ballot

HANCOCK - The Copper Country Intermediate School District is seeking a special education millage request on the upcoming November 3 ballot. If approved, the 0.2903-mill measure would secure operational funding across Baraga, Houghton, and Keweenaw counties for the next 20 years.

CCISD is proposing a millage replacement rather than a renewal, according to the CCISD. The proposal would replace the current millage at the exact same rate as levied in 2026, providing uninterrupted funding for more than 1,000 special education students. The replacement millage would directly support special education services across all 14 local school districts and the CCISD, sustaining services from birth to age 26. Tax revenue generated by the measure would continue to pay for daily student services, special education staff, and classroom equipment.

David Sim, CCISD public engagement specialist, said the replacement millage is not asking for more money than the current millage rate which the voters are already paying. "Like with the CTE program, we aren't asking for anything over and above what it takes to do the best that we can to serve the students we serve," said Sim. "In full transparency, we are trying to be open and honest about where this money is going, and the impact that it has."

Kristina Penfold, director of Special Education, said the reason for the replacement is because the current millage is set to expire at the end of the year.

"It's a technicality, a matter of timing,” Penfold said. “Because the current millage expires in December, there's a legal requirement that we can no longer call it a renewal."

Under Michigan law, a school district or government entity can only place a “renewal” on a ballot if the tax is currently active and being collected. Because the current 2007 millage is written to expire at the end of December, the district is legally allowed to levy and collect it on the winter tax bills. However, because the upcoming November election is voting on funding for the subsequent tax cycle, the original 2007 legal resolution will have formally run its course.

Penfold said across the 14 local school districts the ISD serves, approximately one in four, or 25%, of the total student population qualifies for special education and additional support.

"They might get speech therapy in their local district, or they have a learning disability in math, or reading, or writing, and they just get support in their local district," she said.

Funding centralized services through the ISD is designed to protect local school districts' general funds, according to the CCISD. This ensures local school boards do not have to absorb high-cost specialized care into their general operating budgets, preserving local dollars for general education programs, electives, athletics, and other programming.

A failure of the replacement measure would create a $601,033 annual operational deficit for the Copper Country ISD. This would likely mean reductions in student resources and services, while placing additional financial strain on local school districts across Baraga, Houghton, and Keweenaw counties.

"I will say that if the millage doesn't pass, the funding to do this still has to come from somewhere," Sim said. "Some of the things are required, and some things might have to be cut or pared down. Some of it will be absorbed by the local schools."