Dearest Taylor readers, I could use your help.
I'm working my way through Taylor School District's 2021 bond, and there are questions that I'm trying to answer from beginning to end:
What exactly did Taylor voters authorize in 2021, what did the district ultimately build with the first series, what happened to the new high school, and what will taxpayers receive if the district now borrows the rest?
I have quite a few receipts already. But there are three records I still want before I start drawing this picture for you:
• The original 2021 Treasury preliminary qualification application/Form 3881 and final qualification records for the bond.
• The complete Miller Canfield legal opinion referenced by the district in 2024 regarding the remaining voter-authorized bonds.
• The 2026 proposed bond resolution and debt schedule showing the amount to be issued, maturities, projected debt service/millage, and what the new proceeds are intended to fund.
All three will likely require FOIA.
If you are a Taylor resident willing to request one, I will prepare the FOIA for you and email it to you. You would simply submit it and send me the records when they arrive.
Why am I asking?
Here is the timeline so far:
2021 → Voters authorize up to $130 million. A new High School and Career Center is a centerpiece of the bond.
2022 → Taylor issues the first $29.505 million series.
2023 → Kennedy is demolished and Taylor is still planning the new High School and CTE Center.
2024 → The district stops moving forward with the new-high-school plan and pauses additional bond sales.
2024–25 → Spending from the first series continues.
June 30, 2025 → Taylor still has $15.37 million in its Capital Projects Fund, and its auditor says the 2022 bond capital project is not yet substantially complete.
2026 → The district's current bond program centers on renovating/redesigning Taylor High School rather than constructing the new high school originally presented to voters.
There are still missing pieces.
And before Lady Budgetdown fills those gaps with assumptions, I would much rather fill them with receipts.
If you're willing to help obtain one of these records, send me a message.
With receipts and respect,
Lady Budgetdown