Question 1

1. Why are there two school referendum questions on the ballot?

Accepted Answer

School City of Whiting is addressing two different financial needs that must be handled separately under Indiana law. The Operating Referendum is for the people, programs and services involved in educating students each day. The Project Referendum is for improvements to school buildings, including infrastructure, safety, accessibility and learning spaces. Because operating expenses and major building projects are funded differently, voters will see two separate questions and will make a separate decision on each.

Question 2

2. What is the difference between the Operating Referendum and the Project Referendum?

Accepted Answer

An easy way to think about the two questions is: Operating Referendum = People, Programs, Services & Learning Project Referendum = Buildings, Safety, Infrastructure & Accessibility The Operating Referendum would provide additional annual revenue for up to eight years. The Project Referendum would authorize financing for improvements to school facilities.

Question 3

3. What would the Operating Referendum fund?

Accepted Answer

The ballot language identifies funding and sustaining educational programs, attracting and retaining teachers and staff, maintaining class sizes, and funding academic and student-support programs. The district has also identified needs associated with staffing, teacher compensation, student health and safety services, academic opportunities and other services involved in operating the schools.

Question 4

4. What would the Project Referendum fund?

Accepted Answer

The project is intended to address renovations and improvements throughout School City of Whiting facilities. The district's preliminary project description includes HVAC, electrical, plumbing and site improvements, along with buses, equipment and technology. The facilities planning process has also examined security, accessibility, aging building systems and instructional spaces throughout Whiting's connected school campus.

Question 5

5. Can Operating Referendum money be used to pay for the building project?

Accepted Answer

The two referendums have different purposes and funding mechanisms. Operating referendum revenue is governed by the referendum revenue spending plan adopted by the School Board. The Project Referendum concerns financing for the identified capital project. Keeping the two questions separate is required by statute and allows taxpayers to see the purpose of each and vote on each independently.

Question 6

6. Can Project Referendum money be used for regular teacher salaries and day-to-day programs?

Accepted Answer

The Project Referendum is for capital improvements and related project costs, not an ongoing source of operating revenue for regular educational expenses. That is why Whiting has a separate Operating Referendum question.

Question 7

7. Do I vote separately on the two questions?

Accepted Answer

Yes. They are separate ballot questions. A voter can make an independent decision on the Operating Referendum and the Project Referendum.

Question 8

8. What happens if one referendum passes and the other does not?

Accepted Answer

Because they are separate questions, approval of one does not automatically approve the other. If the Operating Referendum is approved, the district would receive the authorized operating revenue regardless of the result of the Project Referendum. If the Project Referendum is approved, the district could proceed with the authorized project financing regardless of the result of the Operating Referendum. If either question is not approved, the revenue or borrowing authority associated with that question would not be available.

Question 9

9. Why is School City of Whiting asking for an Operating Referendum?

Accepted Answer

The district has identified a gap between the revenue available under its existing funding structure and the cost of maintaining current educational programs, staffing and student services over the coming years. The district's financial planning shows increasing pressure on available cash balances if revenues and expenditures continue along their projected paths. The Operating Referendum would provide an additional local revenue source for up to eight years.

Question 10

10. How much would the Operating Referendum provide?

Accepted Answer

The official ballot question authorizes a property-tax rate not to exceed $0.3372 per $100 of assessed value, resulting in a maximum annual levy of $2.5 million. The referendum would last no more than eight years.

Question 11

11. Does approving the Operating Referendum automatically mean the district will levy the maximum rate every year?

Accepted Answer

The ballot establishes the maximum rate and maximum annual levy authorized by voters. The actual levy is established through the annual budgeting process, subject to the limits approved in the referendum and applicable Indiana law.

Question 12

12. What would operating funding support?

Accepted Answer

The district has identified priorities including: Attracting and retaining teachers and staff Maintaining class sizes Academic and student-support programs Student health and safety services Educational opportunities such as advanced coursework, dual credit and career pathways Other services required to operate the schools 
The district's adopted referendum revenue spending plan governs how referendum revenue may be used.

Question 13

13. How would the Operating Referendum affect teachers and class sizes?

Accepted Answer

Staffing is one of the purposes specifically identified in the ballot language. The district says the additional revenue would help attract and retain teachers and staff and maintain class sizes. Without additional revenue, staffing would be one of the areas the School Board would have to consider as it works to balance future budgets.

Question 14

14. What student programs could operating funding help sustain?

Accepted Answer

Whiting currently provides opportunities including AP and dual-credit coursework, career and technical education, Early College development, performing arts, athletics, Science Olympiad, student support programs and other academic and extracurricular opportunities. Operating revenue helps pay the people, transportation, instructional support and other recurring costs associated with providing educational opportunities.

Question 15

15. How does operating funding relate to school safety?

Accepted Answer

School safety involves both people and buildings. Operating expenses can include personnel and services associated with day-to-day student safety. Capital expenses can address physical security improvements such as entrances, doors, access control and security infrastructure. That is another example of why Whiting's two referendum questions address different needs.

Question 16

16. If enrollment has declined, shouldn't the district need less money?

Accepted Answer

Enrollment affects school funding, but school expenses do not decline dollar-for-dollar when enrollment changes. A school district still needs teachers, administrators, transportation, utilities, technology, maintenance, student services and other functions to operate its schools. Whiting also operates a connected campus with buildings and systems that must be maintained regardless of the number of students in an individual classroom. Enrollment is therefore one factor in the district's finances, but it does not determine expenses by itself.

Question 17

17. Why doesn't the district just cut administration?

Accepted Answer

Administrative expenses are part of the district budget, but reducing one category does not necessarily produce enough savings to address the district's projected long-term operating needs. Without additional revenue, the School Board would have to determine what combination of spending reductions and other changes would be required to balance future budgets.

Question 18

18. Has the district already been using reserves to cover operating costs?

Accepted Answer

District financial materials show that available cash reserves have been used as operating revenues have fallen short of expenditures. Reserves can provide temporary financial flexibility, but repeatedly spending more than the district receives reduces the amount of cash available in future years. The referendum is intended to address the recurring operating revenue side of that financial problem.

Question 19

19. What happens if the Operating Referendum is not approved?

Accepted Answer

The additional operating revenue would not be available. The School Board and administration would then be responsible for balancing future budgets using the revenue that is available. Based on the district's financial projections, that would require decisions about expenditures, staffing, programs, services or other operating costs. Exactly which changes would be made would ultimately be determined through future School Board budget decisions.

Question 20

20. How long would the Operating Referendum last?

Accepted Answer

The referendum would authorize the additional operating levy for no more than eight years. Any operating referendum funding beyond that period would require action permitted under Indiana law, including voter approval where required.

Question 21

21. Why is School City of Whiting asking for a Project Referendum?

Accepted Answer

Whiting's school campus includes buildings constructed in different eras, including portions dating to the early 1900s. The district's facilities review identified needs involving building systems, security, accessibility and educational spaces. The Project Referendum would provide the financing mechanism for a coordinated program of capital improvements rather than attempting to address major needs solely through annual operating budgets.

Question 22

22. Is Whiting building a new school?

Accepted Answer

No new school facility space is identified in the district's preliminary determination. The project is described as renovations and improvements to existing School City of Whiting facilities.

Question 23

23. What kinds of building improvements are being considered?

Accepted Answer

The district's official preliminary project description includes: HVAC Electrical systems Plumbing Site improvements Equipment and technology Buses The broader facilities planning process has also examined secure entrances, accessibility, aging building components and instructional spaces. Final design decisions determine the specific work completed within the available project budget.

Question 24

24. Why are safety and security improvements part of the facilities discussion?

Accepted Answer

The facilities tour documented school entrances where a visitor can be admitted through an exterior door but must travel through portions of the building before reaching the appropriate office. The district and its facilities team have examined options for improving secure entry arrangements, access control and other physical security measures. Operating personnel such as School Resource Officers and physical building security are different expenses, which is another reason the two referendum questions serve different purposes.

Question 25

25. What accessibility problems were identified?

Accepted Answer

Whiting's campus is a connected complex of buildings constructed at different times and elevations. During the facilities review, the team identified accessibility challenges involving multi-level circulation, limited elevator access, restrooms and access to some school spaces. The facilities plan is intended to make targeted accessibility improvements where feasible as renovation work occurs.

Question 26

26. Why are instructional spaces part of the project?

Accepted Answer

Some spaces were designed for educational programs and class sizes from a different era. For example, the facilities tour examined a science room of approximately 800 square feet and compared it with a contemporary laboratory space of roughly 1,200 square feet. District officials discussed the difficulty of accommodating the planned biomedical pathway in the existing room. The project planning process is therefore looking not only at building systems, but at whether spaces adequately support the programs being offered to students.

Question 27

27. What happened to the Whiting auditorium?

Accepted Answer

The auditorium experienced a major structural failure when a portion of its ceiling/roof structure collapsed during the night. The facilities tour documented that much of the structure dated to 1923. After the failure, the district addressed the damaged structure and other related conditions. The auditorium was out of service for approximately two years while the work was completed.

Question 28

28. How much did the auditorium reconstruction cost?

Accepted Answer

District officials reported a cost of approximately $10.2 million. In the district's earlier discussion of the project, officials said approximately $8.2 million came from bond proceeds and insurance covered the remaining amount. The auditorium work is an example of a major facility problem the district has already had to address separately from the proposed 2026 project.

Question 29

29. Does the auditorium collapse mean other school buildings are about to collapse?

Accepted Answer

The facilities materials do not establish that every school building is in imminent danger of structural failure. What the auditorium experience does show is that Whiting operates buildings with aging components and that significant failures can require expensive emergency responses. The current facilities planning process is intended to identify known needs and establish priorities for addressing them.

Question 30

30. Why not just repair things when they break?

Accepted Answer

The district already performs routine maintenance and repairs through its normal operations. Major systems and renovations can require substantially more funding than is available through routine maintenance budgets. Planning capital work also allows related projects to be evaluated together, prioritized and financed over time. The Project Referendum asks voters whether the district should have authority to finance the proposed improvements.

Question 31

31. What is the estimated tax impact of the Operating Referendum?

Accepted Answer

The official ballot language uses a maximum rate of $0.3372 per $100 of assessed value. Under the calculation required for the ballot, a median residence with a gross assessed value of $250,000 is shown as having an annual property-tax increase of $383 if the referendum is approved. That ballot calculation is not necessarily the same as the impact on an individual property because assessed values, deductions, credits and other factors vary.

Question 32

32. What is the estimated tax impact of the Project Referendum?

Accepted Answer

The district's preliminary financing materials estimated a maximum annual lease rental of $3.5 million. Those materials estimated that the Debt Service Fund rate could increase to finance the project, but they also account for existing district debt that will mature over time. For that reason, the district estimated an anticipated net increase of $0.2445 per $100 of assessed value above the current Debt Service Fund rate.

Question 33

33. Why are there different tax rates associated with the Project Referendum?

Accepted Answer

The distinction is between the financing required for the new project and the net change in the district's overall debt-service tax rate as older obligations mature. The district's preliminary determination identified a maximum increase associated with the financing while also projecting that expiring existing debt would reduce the net increase experienced in the overall Debt Service Fund rate. This is why it is important to use property-specific calculations rather than simply adding headline tax rates together.

Question 34

34. What would both referendums mean for my property?

Accepted Answer

The answer depends on the property's assessed value, classification, applicable deductions and credits, and the rates ultimately levied. The website's Tax Impact Calculator is designed to provide a property-specific estimate and to show the Operating and Project impacts separately. Visit the Tax Impact Calculator to estimate the impact for your property.

Question 35

35. Who decides how referendum money is spent?

Accepted Answer

School City of Whiting's elected School Board is responsible for the district's budgets and expenditures. For the Operating Referendum, the Board has adopted a referendum revenue spending plan as required by Indiana law. Capital project expenditures are also subject to the applicable public budgeting, financing, contracting and School Board approval processes.

Question 36

36. When will voters decide these questions?

Accepted Answer

Both School City of Whiting referendum questions are scheduled to appear on the November 3, 2026 General Election ballot. They will appear as separate questions, allowing voters to consider the Operating Referendum and the Project Referendum independently. For information about registration, early voting, polling locations and voting procedures, voters should consult official Lake County and State of Indiana election resources.

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