On November 3, voters in Porter Township School Corporation will consider an eight-year operating referendum.The referendum would provide additional operating revenue to support educational and operational stability, including student transportation, school safety and School Resource Officers, teachers and staff, manageable class sizes, and academic and student support programs.The referendum authorizes a maximum annual levy of $3.5 million and a maximum rate of 35.76 cents per $100 of net assessed value during the eight-year period.

Porter Township Schools is facing a long-term gap between available revenue and the cost of maintaining current services and programs. Porter Township receives $7,149 per student in state basic grant funding, compared with a statewide average of $7,734. In the FY2026 comparison, Porter Township ranks 365th out of 376 Indiana public school corporations, charter schools, and virtual public schools for state basic grant funding per student. At the same time, changes in Indiana property tax law are reducing local property tax revenue available to the district. The district has already reduced expenditures by more than $700,000, but current financial projections still show cash reserves falling below zero beginning in 2029 without additional action.

The amount depends on your property’s net assessed value and the referendum rate levied in a particular year.The district is projecting a rate of 17.21 cents in 2027, the first year of the referendum. At that rate, a homestead net assessed at $337,850 would have an estimated referendum impact of approximately $277 for the year, or about $23 per month, before considering other changes affecting the homeowner’s total property tax bill.However, new deductions, credits, and other property tax changes are occurring at the same time. After those changes are included, the district’s financial analysis projects the net change in the total property tax bill for that same median-value homestead at approximately $60 for all of 2027, or about $5 per month, compared with 2026.Individual results will vary based on net assessed value, deductions, credits, and other factors.Use the Impact Calculator to estimate the impact for your property.

The 35.76-cent rate is the maximum rate authorized during the eight-year referendum. It is not the district’s projected rate for 2027. The district’s financial plan begins at a projected rate of 17.21 cents in 2027 and increases over time as financial pressures increase. The current projection does not reach the maximum 35.76-cent rate until 2031 and projects rates declining after that point. The School Board would review the rate annually and levy only the amount needed to maintain educational programs, student transportation, safety, and staff support.

The actual median homestead gross assessed value in Porter Township School Corporation is approximately $337,850.For purposes of the ballot question, state law requires the median residence value to be rounded up to the next $50,000 increment. That is why the ballot uses a $350,000 home rather than the actual $337,850 median homestead.The ballot also calculates the tax impact using the maximum authorized referendum rate of 35.76 cents, which produces the $599 annual figure shown in the ballot question. That is not the district’s projected first-year rate.For 2027, the district projects a rate of 17.21 cents. At that rate, the referendum-only impact on a $337,850 median homestead is approximately $277 per year, or $23 per month.After accounting for the new deductions, credits, and other property tax changes, the district’s financial analysis projects the net change in the total 2027 property tax bill for that median-value homestead at approximately $60 for the year, or about $5 per month, compared with 2026.

SEA 1 is a new Indiana property tax law designed to provide additional property tax relief. For homeowners, that relief comes through both larger deductions that reduce taxable value and new credits that reduce the final tax bill.Those changes also reduce the local property tax revenue available to Porter Township Schools.One major change involves the supplemental homestead deduction. It increased from 37.5% in 2025 to 40% in 2026 and is scheduled to increase further over the next several years. As those deductions increase, less of a home’s value is subject to property tax. By 2031, a homestead will generally be taxed on only about one-third of its gross assessed value under the scheduled deduction structure.SEA 1 also creates new property tax credits. One of the largest is the Supplemental Homestead Credit, which provides eligible homeowners the lesser of $300 or 10% of the property tax liability attributed to the homestead.These deductions and credits provide property tax relief to homeowners. But when that lost revenue is not replaced by the state, Porter Township Schools receives less local funding.SEA 1 therefore adds significant new pressure to a district already facing a long-term gap between available revenue and operating costs.

Yes. Porter Township Schools has already reduced expenditures by more than $700,000. reducing transportation routes eliminating positions through attrition reducing instructional support implementing furlough days reducing custodial staffing tightening purchasing controls reducing classroom supplies and copying adjusting summer programming implementing energy-saving measures reducing other operational expenses  The district has attempted to protect classrooms and student opportunities while making these reductions.

Enrollment has declined, but many school operating costs do not decline at the same rate. Schools still need teachers and staff, transportation routes, utilities, maintenance, technology, safety personnel, and other services necessary to operate school buildings and serve students. Porter Township’s financial projections account for its enrollment assumptions while still showing expenses exceeding available revenue over time. Without additional action, the district’s projected cash position falls below zero beginning in 2029.

The district has already eliminated positions and reduced administrative and operational expenses as part of its cost reductions. But the projected financial gap is larger than what can reasonably be addressed through administrative reductions alone. Additional reductions eventually reach services that directly affect students and families, including staffing, class sizes, transportation, instructional support, safety, programs, and student opportunities.

Without additional revenue, Porter Township Schools would have to consider further reductions to balance its budget. Potential consequences identified by the district include larger class sizes, staffing reductions, reduced instructional support, impacts to student programs and school safety, and difficulty retaining teachers and staff. Transportation would face particularly significant reductions. The district has stated that without referendum funding, school bus transportation times would either double, or school bus service would be eliminated.

Student transportation is an operating expense supported by the Operations Fund. Unlike classroom instruction, which receives significant state funding through the Education Fund, transportation depends heavily on local operating revenue. Further reductions would require the district to operate fewer routes, substantially increasing transportation times, or eliminate school bus service.

Referendum revenue may be used to maintain essential health and safety initiatives, including the employment and retention of School Resource Officers. SROs provide more than emergency security. They respond to medical emergencies, unauthorized visitors, custody situations, student behavioral concerns, crisis situations, and other day-to-day safety needs. Because Porter Township is a rural district, emergency response from outside agencies can sometimes take 15 to 20 minutes depending on where responders are located. Having trained SROs in the schools provides immediate on-site response.

Staffing is one of the largest factors affecting class size and the amount of individual attention students receive. Referendum funding can be used to support and retain teachers and staff and help Porter Township Schools remain competitive with nearby districts. Maintaining adequate staffing also helps keep class sizes manageable so students can continue receiving personal attention and support from their teachers.

The approved revenue spending plan allows referendum revenue to support educational and operational stability, health and safety initiatives, School Resource Officers, teachers and staff, manageable class sizes, essential student transportation, and academic and student support programs. The referendum is intended to support existing educational and operational needs rather than a specific construction project.

No. This is an operating referendum, not a construction referendum. Operating referendum revenue supports the ongoing educational and operational needs identified in the district’s revenue spending plan. Construction and long-term building debt are handled separately through the district’s Debt Service Fund.

No. Debt Service Fund revenue is dedicated to paying debt associated with previous capital projects and cannot simply be redirected to pay ordinary operating expenses such as teachers, transportation, or student programs. The referendum addresses operating revenue rather than funding a new construction project.

Policy Analytics modeled the district’s long-term financial outlook. Under the no-referendum projection used by the district, cash falls from approximately $3.8 million in 2026 to $2.1 million in 2027 and $600,000 in 2028. The projection falls below zero in 2029 and reaches approximately negative $13.3 million by 2034 without additional action. These are projections based on financial assumptions, not actual future deficits that have already occurred. The district would have to make additional spending reductions or identify additional revenue before allowing those projected deficits to occur.

No. Porter Township Schools was already facing financial pressure from the relationship between regular revenues and operating costs. The district also receives the 11th-lowest state basic grant funding per student in Indiana’s FY2026 comparison, ranking 365th out of 376 public school corporations, charter schools, and virtual public schools at $7,149 per student. Among the 10 entities receiving less state basic grant funding per student than Porter Township, only three do not have operating referendums in place. Operating referendums are also not unusual among Indiana traditional public school corporations. Approximately 23.7% — nearly one in four — have an operating referendum in place. SEA 1 adds another layer of pressure by reducing local property tax revenue through larger deductions, new credits, and other property tax changes. The district’s financial challenge is therefore broader than any single law or single funding source.

For FY2026, Porter Township receives approximately $7,149 per student in state basic grant funding, compared with a statewide average of approximately $7,734. That is about $585 less per student than the statewide average. Porter Township ranks 365th out of 376 Indiana public school corporations, charter schools, and virtual public schools included in that state basic grant comparison, placing it 11th from the bottom.

The referendum is authorized for no more than eight years, beginning with taxes collected in 2027 and continuing through 2034. It does not continue indefinitely.

The Porter Township School Corporation Board of School Trustees adopts the district’s annual budget and determines spending within the purposes authorized by the referendum and Indiana law. The district has also adopted a Revenue Spending Plan identifying the purposes for which referendum revenue is intended to be used. That plan may be updated as part of the district’s annual budget process as actual revenue and financial needs change.

No. 35.76 cents is the maximum rate authorized during the eight-year referendum. The district’s current projection begins at 17.21 cents in 2027, increases over time as revenue pressures increase, reaches the maximum rate in 2031, and then projects rates declining. The School Board would review the rate annually and levy only the amount needed to maintain educational programs, student transportation, safety, and staff support.

Strong schools benefit the entire community, including residents who do not currently have children enrolled. Strong schools help protect home property values and keep Porter Township a place where families want to live and invest. They also help maintain the quality of the community by preparing students for college, careers, military service, and the local workforce. The referendum gives every voter the opportunity to decide whether maintaining transportation, school safety, quality teachers and staff, manageable class sizes, and student opportunities is an investment they want to continue making in Porter Township.

No. Friends of Porter Township Schools is an independent campaign organization supporting the referendum. Porter Township School Corporation is the public school district. Campaign contributions, yard signs, volunteer activities, and other campaign advocacy are conducted by the campaign organization and are separate from school corporation operations. Friends of Porter Township Schools are the parents, teachers, and concerned citizens who believe in our school system. NO TAX DOLLARS USED. Jim LeBlanc, Chairman, Lisa Broton, Treasurer.

Use the Impact Calculator to estimate the referendum impact based on your property’s net assessed value.Remember that the referendum-only impact and the change in your total property tax bill are different calculations because SEA 1 deductions, credits, and other property tax changes may also affect your bill.IMPACT CALCULATOR