‘For the benefit of the students’: Washington County School Board approves tax initiative

Written by Nick Yamashita
August 10, 2023

ST. GEORGE — Following a Truth in Taxation meeting held Monday night, the Washington County School District Board of Education unanimously approved the new tax initiative.

Washington County School District Board approved unanimously a new tax initiative for local school fund property tax, St. George, Utah, Aug. 8, 2023 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News

“We have to choose and sometimes we have to choose hard things,” board member Craig Seegmiller said.

The tax initiative combines the Debt Service Levy tax rate with the Capital Levy tax rate into what is a lower tax rate, which will zero out the Debt Service Levy, as previously reported by St. George News. In addition to multiple meetings at high schools to inform the public of the initiative, the district also held a Truth in Taxation public informational meeting on Monday night as required by state law.

According to the district administration, 71 people spoke during the Truth in Taxation meeting and a couple of hundred people were present. The district also received and answered over 100 phone calls and emails.

“About 90% of those people were satisfied with the answers we provided and were in support of the tax initiative,” said Steve Dunham, who serves as the director of communications for the school district.

During the school board meeting Tuesday night, four people spoke out against the proposed tax initiative after the proposal was approved. Claims of “illegal procedure” and “unprofessional antics” were alleged as well as some saying the board’s vote went “against the voice of the people.”

Wendy Godlewski speaks out in opposition of the tax initiative during the Washington County School District Board meeting, St. George, Utah, Aug. 8, 2023 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News

The first person to speak out against the approval was Wendy Godlewski, who said everyone she asked who had tax records going back three years said their dollar amount for local school taxes went up 25%-50%.

Also voicing opposition was Erika Hodges, who has spoken multiple times in previous board meetings concerning the presence of “pornographic” material in school libraries.

Hodges quoted French Economist Frédéric Bastiat’s “Theory of Plunder” from the late-1840s:

“When a portion of wealth passes from the person who has acquired it, without his consent and without compensation, to someone who has not created it, whether this is by force or fraud, I say that there has been a violation of property rights and that there has been an act of plunder.”

At the end of her three minutes, she asked for 30 seconds of silence to memorialize the “death of the voice of the people,” which the board allowed.

(L-R) Washington County School District Board members Brent Bills, Nannette Simmons, Craig Seegmiller, and David Stirland look at a presentation during the monthly meeting, St. George, Utah, Aug. 8, 2023 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News

Board member Burke Staheli said as a person who has worked for the district for over 30 years and committed his time to serving the students, he was not able to sleep the night after Monday’s Truth in Taxation meetings.

“I heard some things that really hurt me,” Staheli said in reference to the meeting.

With a growing admiration of the area and people continuing to move to the county, he said that means more schools must be built to keep up with the growth and ensure students have the best possible learning environments.

Board member Terry Hutchinson said he believes the tax initiative will benefit students and taxpayers in the long run.

“For me, the vote still comes down to the fiscal responsibility and that is maximizing the tax dollars for the benefit of the students,” he said.

Seegmiller thanked the public for putting them through a hard inquisition of the proposal, saying it is something they need to do with important government issues and proposals. By law, matters of budget and taxes must be revisited annually, which helps with accountability, he added.

The meeting was adjourned after almost three hours of length.

Kylee Bangerter and Elsie Christiansen receive honors from the Washington County School Board, St. George, Utah, Aug. 8, 2023 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News

Recordings of the June 6 work session and the July 31 work session board meetings can be accessed at the links provided.

Student recognition

Earlier in the meeting, several students were recognized for accomplishments within the career and technical student organizations, these included Kylee Bangerter and Elsie Christiansen who won second place in the national Family, Career and Community Leaders of America Event Management contest.

Another student recognized was Ellie Brinkerhoff who took first place at the state level and second place at the national level for T-shirt design that is sold online at Amber Rose Clothing.

Sydnee Losser took fifth in the nation for prepared speaking and Vedi Vekaria made nationals, which took place in Houston, Texas.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nick Yamashita has extensive experience reporting for small town media, covering a variety of subjects and events for The Virgin River Times and The Progress in Southern Nevada. Before a career in journalism, he worked a variety of jobs in criminal justice systems. Yamashita holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and a master's degree in interdisciplinary studies from Southern Utah University. He is an award-winning photographer and writer. He has been published in scholarly articles and poetry compilations. In his spare time, he practices and teaches martial arts.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @STGnews

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