Like most Wisconsin school districts, the School District of Shell Lake struggles to balance its budget due to an inadequate state education funding system, a lack of state aid to public schools in recent years, and rising expenses—among other factors.

School districts statewide are primarily funded by a combination of state aid and local property taxes. We are also subject to a revenue limit, first imposed at the state level in 1993. For decades, the revenue limit for districts like ours has failed to keep pace with inflation.

If revenues had kept pace with inflation since 2009, districts like ours would now receive about $3,300 more per student each year.

In 2025-26, $357.5 million was reduced from general public school aid to give to private voucher schools. More than 70% of Wisconsin public school districts saw a reduction in their school aid.

Meanwhile, everyday expenses continue to rise. These include utilities, transportation, food service, maintenance, property and liability insurance, curricular resources, and employee wages and benefits.

The needs of our students have also increased, especially in special education. These are expenses for state and federally mandated services for which we receive inadequate funding. Last year, nearly $800,000 from the district’s general fund was spent to cover special education costs because the state reimbursed for less than one-third of the total cost.

Lower enrollment also means lower state aid. Approximately 74% of school districts in Wisconsin have experienced enrollment declines in the past 15 years, including the School District of Shell Lake.

The Board of Education and administration have reduced expenses by $941,653 since 2022-23 to address budget deficits and funding shortfalls. These actions have included:

• Health insurance deductibles for employees were raised by 60% since 2022-23

• Staff positions were eliminated (9 teachers, 1.5 custodians, two support staffers)

• Various spending cuts were made, totaling $100,000

• Retirement of debt from the 2019 school addition saved about $100,000 in total interest and reduced the amount of the debt levy by $2 million over the remaining three years of the note

Our district ranks 414th out of 421 school districts statewide when it comes to student funding. The district receives about $1,912 less per student compared to our neighbors.

• Spooner: $12,946 (No. 139)

• Cumberland: $12,710 (No. 161)

• Siren: $12,514 (No. 180)

• Frederic: $12,447 (No. 191)

• Rice Lake: $12,395 (No. 202)

• Webster: $11,072 (No. 403)

• Shell Lake: $11,034 (No. 414)

On Tuesday, April 7, 2026, our community will vote on a non-recurring operational referendum question for the School District of Shell Lake. If this measure is approved by at least 50% of voters, the district will be able to exceed its state-imposed revenue limit by $650,000 per year for four years, starting in the 2026-27 school year.

We would use these funds to:

• Maintain class sizes and ensure individualized attention for our students

• Continue offering academic programs and extracurricular activities

• Avoid eliminating teacher and staff positions

• Update computers and technology

• Address building maintenance projects

• Maintain an adequate general fund balance to avoid short-term borrowing

Over the last 10 years, nearly 80% of school districts have attempted operational referendums to date. And in the past decade, more than half of the school districts in Wisconsin have received approval from voters through successful operational referendums to exceed revenue limits.

Among neighboring districts, Birchwood, Clayton, Frederic, Luck, Prairie Farm, Siren, Spooner, and Turtle Lake have all approved operational referendums since 2017. Some of these districts have approved multiple referendums in that timespan.

Yes, voters in our community considered operational referendum measures in April 2025 and November 2024. In each case, the required approval threshold of 50% was not reached.

Since these election outcomes, the district has engaged with the community to gather feedback and input. A community survey last year found:

• 83% of all respondents strongly agree or agree that the district’s financial needs must be addressed.

• 70.7% of all respondents said they would definitely or probably support a referendum question to increase the revenue limit by $700,000 annually, the same amount each year, for four years, with no increase in the mill rate.

If the operational referendum is not approved, the Board of Education and administration will be forced to consider reducing programs and services for students, increasing class sizes, limiting or eliminating some extracurricular activities, delaying maintenance projects, and reducing staff.

Based on state funding formulas, an operational referendum is the only option to prevent additional cuts to programming and opportunities for students.

An approved referendum is estimated to increase the mill rate from $6.82 to $6.89. For a property valued at $250,000, this amounts to an increase of approximately $17.50 per year.

By using sound debt management, the district will be able to keep the mill rate at $6.89 for each year of the referendum.

Since the 2021-22 school year, the district’s mill rate has fallen more than 37%, from $10.84 per $1,000 of estimated fair market property value to $6.82 in 2025-26. More information is available at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction website, at https://sfs.dpi.wi.gov/sfsdw.

If approved by voters, the proposed referendum will sunset in 2030.

Election day is Tuesday, April 7, 2026. The polls will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. More information is available at https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us.

Yes, voters may request that an absentee ballot be mailed to them for any reason. However, you must be registered before you can request an absentee ballot.

If you are registered, you can request an absentee ballot by visiting https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/VoteAbsentee. Note that you must provide a photo ID with your absentee ballot request.

Eligible voters can register up to election day, and can even register at the polls.

The deadline to register by mail or online is March 18, 2026. If you miss this deadline, you can still register in person at your municipal clerk’s office until 5:00 p.m. on April 3, 2026, or at your polling place on Election Day.

To learn more about registering to vote, visit https://myvote.wi.gov/register-To-Vote.

Voters will see the following question on their ballots on Tuesday, April 7:

BE IT RESOLVED by the School Board of the School District of Shell Lake, Washburn, Burnett and Barron Counties, Wisconsin that the revenues included in the School District budget be authorized to exceed the revenue limit specified in Section 121.91, Wisconsin Statutes, by $650,000 per year for four years, beginning with the 2026-2027 school year and ending with the 2029-2030 school year, for non-recurring purposes consisting of operational costs related to educational programs, instructional resources and maintenance expenses.