Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger doesn’t want to wait until next year to reignite conversations around the school district’s budget and the need for additional revenue.
After presenting a county budget for 2018 that doesn’t include a tax increase for schools, Coppinger said Friday the county and school system should start working together now to change the community’s perception and work to secure more funding for schools in future years.
He hopes the two bodies will work together to develop specific goals for the district and prove to the public that more money invested in public education will boost outcomes.
“And it’s important to know how much that’s going to cost,” Coppinger said. “So that, again, the public is informed and trusts that the money is going to be well spent.”
Coppinger sent a letter to school board chairman Steve Highlander on Friday, asking for work to begin as soon as a permanent superintendent is in place. The plan needs to show the school district’s efficiencies and exactly how it will use additional revenue, he said.