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Voters cast their ballot for the presidential, state and local races and issues on Tuesday at the Mercer County Fairgrounds.
COLDWATER- Voters in the Coldwater Exempted Village Schools district on Tuesday narrowly defeated a five-year, additional 0.5% traditional income tax by a mere 38 votes.
Unofficial final results show the levy going down with 49.52% or 1,945 votes cast in support and 50.48% or 1,983 votes against it.
However, there were 34 provisional ballots cast in Coldwater that will be reviewed by the Mercer County Board of Elections on Nov. 19, according to deputy director Kristi Rable.
There are also about 40 absentee ballots from Coldwater that will be counted if properly postmarked and mailed in by Saturday, she added.
They could potentially impact the levy's final outcome.
School board president Terry Shroyer said the school board deeply appreciates the support of those who voted for the levy and those who gave their time to promote it.
"The board of education remains committed to providing our students with a quality education in a safe and comfortable environment," Shroyer said. "The failure of the levy will make our task more challenging, but we will always strive to make decisions that are in the best interest of the students. We further pledge to continue being good stewards of your tax dollars."
Superintendent Doug Mader said the levy failure is disapointing and will undoubtably impact the district.
"As Cavaliers, we are committed to facing this challenge with resilience and purpose, maintaining our focus on making a meaningful difference in the lives of our students," Mader said.
He continued that he and the board are immensely proud of their teachers and staff for their unwavering dedication.
"In light of the levy's outcome, adjustments may be necessary, including restricted building hours, limited access, and changes to certain programming," he said. "We are working closely with the board to explore options for balancing revenues and expenditures, as well as to outline what district management will look like moving forward. Our priority remains educational quality and addressing critical infrastructure needs within a responsible budget."
The levy would have bumped up the existing 0.5% traditional income tax to 1%.
The increased tax would have raised an additional $1.3 million for current expenses, treasurer Jenn McCoy had said.
The 0.5% traditional income tax levy was first passed by voters in 1999 and currently generates about $1 million annually, according to McCoy.
A previous levy proposal shot down by 71% of voters at the March 19 primary election called for replacing the 0.5% traditional income tax with a 1.75% earned income tax. It would have applied only to employee compensation and net earnings from self-employment.
In the aftermath of its failure, school board members had agreed to make a second levy attempt, this time going with an additional 0.5% traditional income tax.
