Millage Information
Official Ballot Language
Official Ballot Language
ICISD Millage Proposal
This proposal will allow the intermediate school district to continue to levy special education millagepreviously approved by the electors and restores millage lost as a result of the reduction required by the Michigan Constitution of 1963.
Shall the currently authorized millage rate limitation of 0.4013 mill ($0.4013 on each $1,000 of taxablevaluation), on the amount of taxes which may be assessed against all property in Ionia CountyIntermediate School District, Michigan, to provide funds for the education of students with a disability, berenewed for a period of 10 years, 2027 to 2036, inclusive, and also be increased by 0.1323 mill ($0.1323 oneach $1,000 of taxable valuation) for a total of 0.5336 mill, for a period of 10 years, 2027 to 2036, inclusive,the estimate of the revenue the intermediate school district will collect if the millage is approved andlevied in 2027 is approximately $1,509,968 from local property taxes authorized herein (this is a renewal ofmillage that will expire with the 2026 tax levy and a restoration of millage lost as a result of the reduction required by the Michigan Constitution of 1963)?
Top 6 Questions
When is the election?
When is the election?
The election is on Tuesday August 4, 2026, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Absentee ballots will be available starting Thursday, June 25, 2026, and can be mailed or delivered to election boxes until Election Day.
What is the purpose of this millage proposal?
What is the purpose of this millage proposal?
State and federal funding covers less than 50% of the funds needed for mandatory special education services. In order to maintain programming at current levels, the remainder of costs must be funded through a special education millage, or local public school districts must cover the gap by diverting funds from general education programs and services. This millage proposal would help cover the gap caused by underfunding at the state and federal levels, currently leaving Ionia County school districts underfunded by an approximate $8.0 million, annually.
Who benefits?
Who benefits?
Every school district in Ionia County has students with special needs – this impacts EVERY district. The millage restoration would benefit all students, it would provide dedicated funds for special needs students and free up general education funds used to support programs and services for all students.
Do private school students benefit from a special education millage?
Do private school students benefit from a special education millage?
The public school district where a private school is located is responsible for providing special education services to eligible private school students. Public schools are also required by federal law (IDEA Part B) to allocate a portion of the federal dollars it receives equitably, which includes special education and related services for eligible private school students.
What is the impact to local districts if the millage is not renewed?
What is the impact to local districts if the millage is not renewed?
Without this millage in place, Ionia County school districts would lose approximately $1.1 million in special education funding, resulting in fewer dollars available to support programs for all students. Ultimately, this would increase financial stress on local school districts to pull funding from general education funds to provide for mandated special education services.
What’s the cost to homeowners?
What’s the cost to homeowners?
To simplify the math, for a $200,000 home (taxable value $100,000), the cost is $53.36 annually, or $4.45 per month, whichis an increase of $13.23 annually or $1.11 per month from what’s currently collected. Multiply your home’s taxable valueby 0.0005336 to calculate your specific annual cost.
| Home | Taxable | Current | Millage | Proposed | Millage | Increase | Increase |
| Value | Value | Monthly | Annual | Monthly | Annual | Monthly | Annual |
| $100,000 | $50,000 | $1.67 | $20.07 | $2.22 | $26.68 | $0.55 | $6.61 |
| $200,000 | $100,000 | $3.34 | $40.13 | $4.45 | $53.36 | $1.11 | $13.23 |
| $300,000 | $150,000 | $5.02 | $60.20 | $6.67 | $80.04 | $1.65 | $19.84 |
| $400,000 | $200,000 | $6.69 | $80.26 | $8.89 | $106.72 | $2.02 | $26.46 |
Did You Know?
Did You Know?
- Currently, 1 in 6 of students throughout the Ionia ISD service region receive special education services.
- If approved by voters, the millage would generate approximately $1.5 million annually for IoniaCounty schools.
- If not approved, $1.1 million in current funding would be lost annually for Ionia County schools.
- Michigan law requires school districts to provide special education programs and services toindividuals with disabilities from birth to age 26, or upon graduation from high school.
- Students are eligible for services under one or more of 13 special education service areas including:
- Autism
- Cognitive Impairment
- Deaf-Blindness
- Deaf and Hard of Hearing
- Early Childhood Development Delay
- Emotional Impairment
- Otherwise Health Impairment
- Physical Impairment
- Severe Multiple Impairmen
- Specific Learning Disability
- Speech and Language Impairment
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Visual Impairment
- Voters approved special education millages in 1977, 1987, 2003 and 2017.
- In school ballot questions, a YES vote means that you approve of the ballot proposal.
