An operating referendum is a vote that lets our community decide if our schools can get a little more money to help with everyday costs, like paying teachers, keeping schools safe, running buses, and supporting student programs. This money helps with three main things:

• School Safety - Keeping students and staff safe

• Student Supports - Helping every student learn and grow

• Recruiting and Keeping Great Staff - Making sure we have the best teachers and support staff

This is different from a capital referendum, which pays for big construction projects, like new buildings or major repairs.

An operating referendum keeps schools running strong every day

Question:  Shall the De Soto Area School District, Vernon and Crawford Counties, Wisconsin be authorized to exceed the revenue limit specified in Section 121.91, Wisconsin Statutes, by $500,000 for the 2026-2027 school year, by $1,400,000 for the 2027-2028 school year and by $1,700,000 for the 2028-2029 school year, for non-recurring purposes consisting of maintaining facilities, instructional programs, student services and updating security and network technology systems?

The De Soto Area School District is experiencing increasing costs in areas, such as transportation, utilities, insurance, technology, security and safety requirements and student services.  At the same time, we are receiving less federal funding and state aid is in no way keeping up with inflation. 

Moreover, the state also limits the amount of money available to our schools from state aid and local property taxes.  State funding levels used to increase with inflation, but the state ended that in 2009.  If that had continued De Soto would have more than $1.7 million in additional funds this year ($3,573 more per student, based on our enrollment for the 2025-2026 school year).

Two other factors are the state’s reluctance to reimburse local school districts for special education costs at the rate they promised (42%) and private school vouchers, which cost the De Soto School District approximately $230,000 on an annual basis.

Lastly, student enrollment throughout Wisconsin has declined over the last fifteen years; however, the declines are spread across grade levels, therefore, they do not necessarily result in staffing and operational savings.  This is an issue because the amount of money we receive is based on the number of students we serve.  This is not just a De Soto concern, as 68 of Wisconsin's 72 counties have school districts that have fewer students now than they did fifteen years ago.