MAUMEE, Ohio — Maumee City Schools has until late January to draw up a new financial plan after voters rejected the district’s proposed 1.25% earned income tax levy on Nov. 3, 2026, The Blade reported Nov. 10. The district announced the deadline as deliberations on budget cuts continue.

The development follows our Nov. 5 report on the levy defeat, which covered the rejection of the income tax measure and the deep cuts the district said would follow. The levy was the district’s first new-money ask since May 2018, and its defeat leaves Maumee City Schools to close a growing gap between flat revenue and rising costs.

Maumee City Schools is operating under a state-designated “precautionary” financial status, assigned by the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce in a letter dated Sept. 2, 2026. Under that designation, the district must submit a board-approved corrective action plan.

Without new revenue, the district faces about $3 million in additional cuts before the 2027-28 school year, an $8.2 million projected deficit by fiscal year 2029 and a negative cash balance in fiscal year 2029, according to the district’s financial outlook. Revenue is flat at roughly $36 million to $37 million a year while spending is projected to rise past $46 million by fiscal year 2030.

The district has already cut $1,614,134 a year, including 5.25 teaching positions, four support staff positions, one administrator and one clerical position, along with 10% cuts to departmental budgets.

District leaders have outlined a set of Plan B options under discussion if no new revenue is approved. Board President Allison Fiscus described those options on Sept. 29 as larger class sizes, fewer course options, reduced student support, transportation changes, reduced technology access, fewer summer and specialized learning programs, and staffing reductions. Maumee City News reported on Oct. 30 that the district had outlined those Plan B cuts as voters debated the income tax levy.

State funding is a central part of the district’s case. The state has funded only about 66% of the Fair School Funding Plan since 2023, and Maumee receives $2,529 per pupil, compared with the $8,241.61 base cost used in the funding formula, according to Maumee City Schools.

The Nov. 5 report also covered Springfield Local Schools, where voters likewise rejected an income tax proposal, leaving two Lucas County districts to weigh cuts. In Maumee, the levy debate centered on a district whose revenue has stayed flat at roughly $36 million to $37 million a year while spending is projected to rise past $46 million by fiscal year 2030, a mismatch the district’s financial outlook projects will widen in the years ahead.

Deliberations on the budget cuts continue as the district works toward the late-January deadline for its new financial plan.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons — a generic high school building exterior.