DELAWARE — Voters in Delaware County have chosen to renew the Delaware Area Career Center’s (DACC) 0.75-mill, 10-year levy, according to final, unofficial totals from the Delaware County Board of Elections.
The levy supports career and technical education, workforce development, continuing education for adults, career awareness programs for younger students and partnerships with local businesses, DACC Superintendent Jay Poroda previously told Delaware Source.
The levy received 54,356 votes in favor, which represents a 57.12% majority, while 40,806 voters, or 42.88%, opted to reject it.
“We are just so grateful for the trust that the community has placed in DACC. We do a lot of good work for the community and the community sees that,” Poroda said.
“I will make a promise to our community that we’re going to honor that trust by continuing to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars,” he said.
DACC’s levy was previously collected at 1.7 mills, but DACC chose to reduce the millage rate to 0.75 mills. Voters last approved the levy in 2015 and this was the final year to renew it, Poroda said.
The levy will lower the annual cost for property owners from $34 to $18 per $100,000 of market value, saving property owners an estimated $16 annually, based on figures from the Delaware County Auditor’s Office.
Delaware County Auditor George Kaitsa estimates the levy will collect $5,773,576 annually, at a combined rate not exceeding 0.75 mill for each $1 of taxable value.
The levy takes effect for tax year 2026, with payments beginning in 2027.
The ballot language identifies improvements, renovations, remodeling, expansions, furnishings and equipment for school buildings and facilities as uses for the funding, but Poroda added it also supports day-to-day operations.
The levy is separate from the district’s planned facility expansion projects, which DACC funds through existing financial planning and resources.
That includes the current expansion of the high school student space, which DACC officials expect to allow an additional 200 to 250 students to enroll within the next two years, according to previous Delaware Source reporting.
“We see ourselves as an economic hub for the community as well as an educational hub,” Poroda said.
