ElectionsWednesday, November 4
Voters pass the 7-mill Cincinnati Public Schools levy, 61% to 39%.
The 5AM Cincinnati team
If you own a home in the Cincinnati Public Schools district, Issue 4 is now part of your tax math. Voters passed the 7-mill levy 61% to 39%, the district's first new-money levy in 10 years.
The board had already cut more than 100 positions to close a projected $58.6 million deficit. Board President Brandon Craig told FOX19 NOW the money lets CPS "fully invest in our Strategic Plan."
- Cost: $245 a year per $100,000 of home value
- Half-year bill: about $122.50 per $100,000
- New revenue: about $66.3 million a year for five years
- Revenue starts: 2027
The levy came after a rocky summer of cuts and a switch
- MayA packed school board meeting weighs millions in cuts.
- Late JuneBoard votes on more than $58 million in cuts for 2026-27.
- Late JulyBoard votes to put a 0.75 percent earned income tax on the ballot.
- Aug. 3Board rescinds that option and picks a 7-mill property tax.
- Nov. 3Voters pass Issue 4, 61% to 39%.
- Nov. 30CPS must submit its recovery plan to the state.
CPS must submit a recovery plan to the state by Nov. 30. Business groups had said they couldn't support the levy, while Superintendent Shauna Murphy told voters "there's nowhere else to cut."
Sources: WVXU, WCPO 9 Cincinnati, FOX19, WKRC, WLWT