Dayton Public Schools has a new proposed levy midterm ballot.
If passed, it would annually generate $14.7 million. The measure would cost the owner of a $100,000 home, $245 a year in property tax.
But the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce opposes the measure.
President and CEO Chris Kershner said first, the district should do more.
"Dayton Public Schools, tighten your belt first, before you go and ask taxpayers to pay more money. What can you do to reduce costs on your own before you come with your hand out for $14 million?" Kershner said.
According to the DPS board of education, the district has made changes to be more efficient, including consolidating preschools and alternative programming, adding sixth grade to three stand alone middle schools and reconfiguring elementary schools feeding into higher grades. It also doesn’t bus DPS high school students, an annual savings of about $9 million.
DPS Superintendent David Lawrence said a portion of the new tax would go to operating expenses such as utilities and teacher salaries.
The rest is for ongoing improvements, fixing buildings as well as supporting student programs. That's something Lawrence said is key to building up the district's 12,779 students.
"We're doing transformational work right now, and we want to continue to do that work through Ford Next Generation Learning. We want to continue to increase the graduation rates significantly like we did last year," said Lawrence. "Those are things that you don't do with fewer resources, that doesn't make sense."
Other Chamber complaints include saying DPS needs to do more to ensure student safety on RTA buses, especially around the downtown hub. However, DPS Chief of Safety and Security Richard Wright said since the beginning of the 2026-2027 school year, RTA has only reported one incident involving DPS students.
"The one was a verbal argument that was reported to us of disagreement on a bus once the bus got downtown. I think it was two students who were actually trespassed. Once they left the hub, they just said, hey, you're on a 30 days' trespass," said Wright.
The Chamber also wants the district to improve its four-year graduation rate.
However, last year, the districts’ graduation rate increased from about 68% to nearly 75%. And this school year it is projected to reach 80%, which is similar to the four year graduation rates at other area urban districts. Cincinnati Public Schools has an 80.6% four-year graduation rate and Columbus Public Schools has an 81.5% four-year graduation rate.
