Omaha schools propose 8.2-cent levy increase

The proposed levy change

Omaha Public Schools has proposed an 8.2-cent levy increase as part of its budget for this school year. The district identified the levy change as one way to respond to a reduction in its state aid allotment.

The levy increase remains part of a proposed budget. The 8.2-cent figure describes the proposed increase, while the figure describes the district’s total reduction in state aid for the school year.

How the aid shortfall developed

The Nebraska Department of Education said in November that it had miscalculated state aid allocations, resulting in overpayments to three school districts. Omaha Public Schools received the largest overpayment, totaling.

The department is addressing the error by providing less state aid to Omaha and the two other affected districts. For Omaha, that adjustment and other reductions combine to lower this school year’s state aid allotment by.

The overpayment and the aid reduction are related but separate figures. The first is the amount Omaha received because of the earlier calculation error; the second is the district’s full year-over-year aid shortfall after the correction and other reductions.

District response

OPS Chief Financial Officer Shane Rhian said the district reviewed the recalculation and discussed it extensively with the Nebraska Department of Education. He said the department acknowledged that its own error caused the mistake and that the problem did not come from data submitted by OPS.

Rhian also said the department had worked with the district as a partner. He described the resulting financial position as difficult but said OPS had been able to manage through it.