The 18-mill, one-year levy, which is applied on commercial, industrial and rental residential properties, will be voted on Tuesday, May 6.
If approved, the non-homestead tax would generate about $11,355,000 for the district during the 2026-27 school year, representing about 11-12 percent of its expected annual revenue, ZPS Chief Financial Officer Lynn Van Kampen said.
“This is something the state does not make up if we don’t collect the mills,” Van Kampen said.
The board’s Finance Committee reviewed the ballot language earlier this month before it came before the full board. The non-homestead levy does not affect owner-occupied homes in the district.
In May of last year, district voters easily approved renewing the levy, generating more than $10.9 million in revenue for the 2025-26 school year. The measure passed with 2,906 yes votes to 1,157 no votes.
Van Kampen noted that the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District will be seeking renewal of its millage to support special education programs on the May ballot.
In other business Monday, the school board approved retaining the same slate of officers it had a year ago. April DeWitt, who has served on the board since 2017, was re-elected board president. Rick Dernberger will stay on as vice president, Tom DenHerder remains treasurer and Chad Creevy will continue as secretary.
DeWitt also announced that committee assignments for the board will remain the same as last year. She will chair the Agenda Planning Committee, joined by Dernberger and DenHerder.
Dernberger, Betsy Kikstra and Tami Mannes will serve on the Policy and Goals Committee, while DenHerder, Creevy and Heidi Geerlings will comprise the Finance Committee.
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