2026 Voter Guide: This article is part of Johnstown Republic’s guide to the Nov. 3 ballot.
Voters in the Weld RE-5J School District will decide Ballot Issue 5A, which would extend the district’s existing $4 million annual mill levy override beyond its scheduled expiration in 2030.
The proposal would not increase the current $4 million annual authorization. Instead, it would allow the district to continue collecting that amount after the existing authorization expires.
The official ballot language from Weld County describes the measure as an extension “without imposing a new tax.”
That wording is important: Ballot Issue 5A would not create a new $4 million levy today. It would prevent the existing $4 million levy from expiring after 2030.
What would Ballot Issue 5A do?
Weld RE-5J voters approved a fixed $4 million annual mill levy override in 2020 for a limited 10-year period. The district says that authorization will expire in 2030.
Ballot Issue 5A would extend the authorization without a scheduled expiration date.
According to the district’s official MLO information, the continued revenue would support priorities including:
- Retaining and attracting staff;
- Additional safety, security and mental-health personnel;
- Career exploration and preparation programs; and
- Early-childhood programming.
The Weld RE-5J Board of Education voted 4-1 on Aug. 19 to place the extension before voters. (weldre5j.org)
The district also has a separate $500,000 annual mill levy override approved in 2003 that continues indefinitely. Ballot Issue 5A does not change that measure.
What is a mill levy override?
A mill levy override, or MLO, is additional property-tax revenue approved by local voters for school district operating expenses.
Unlike a school bond, which generally finances major construction or facility projects, an MLO provides operating revenue that can support expenses such as staffing, instructional programs and student services.
Weld RE-5J’s two existing overrides are structured as fixed-dollar amounts, not fixed mill rates. Together, the 2003 and 2020 measures generate $4.5 million annually.
That distinction matters because the property-tax rate needed to collect a fixed dollar amount can change as the total assessed value of property within the district changes.
According to Weld RE-5J, the two overrides required a combined 8.85 mills in 2021 to generate $4.5 million. As assessed values grew, the required combined levy declined to about 3.52 mills in 2026 while still generating the same fixed amount.
What does a YES vote mean?
A YES vote would allow Weld RE-5J to continue collecting up to $4 million annually under the 2020 mill levy override after the authorization otherwise expires in 2030.
The extension would continue without a scheduled expiration date.
What does a NO vote mean?
A NO vote would not eliminate the existing levy immediately.
The current $4 million authorization would remain in effect through its existing term and then expire in 2030.
The district says it may return to voters before the current MLO expires. If an extension is not approved by that time, Weld RE-5J says it would likely need to seek a new mill levy override, which could be structured differently and could have different impacts on taxpayers. (weldre5j.org)
The separate $500,000 annual override approved in 2003 would continue regardless of the outcome of Ballot Issue 5A.
What would it cost taxpayers?
Ballot Issue 5A would not increase the district’s current $4 million annual collection. Its financial effect is that property owners within the district would continue paying the levy after 2030 rather than seeing that portion of the district property tax expire.
There is no single fixed mill rate that can be assigned to the extension today.
Because the authorization is for a fixed amount of revenue, the mill rate needed to collect $4 million changes with the district’s total assessed property value. If assessed values rise, fewer mills may be necessary to generate the same amount. If assessed values fall, the required mill rate could increase.
That is why a simple estimate such as “5A will cost the owner of a $500,000 home a specific amount every year” could be misleading several years before the extension would take effect.
The clearest distinction for voters is:
If 5A passes: the $4 million annual property-tax authorization continues beyond 2030.
If 5A fails and no replacement measure is later approved: that $4 million authorization expires after 2030.
Why is Weld RE-5J asking voters now?
The existing levy does not expire for another four years.
Weld RE-5J says an earlier decision would give the district more certainty when planning future staffing and programs. The district reports an operating budget of approximately $50 million annually, meaning the $4 million override represents nearly 8% of its operating budget. (weldre5j.org)
The district also says 84% of its operating budget supports staff who directly serve students and that losing the MLO could require contingency planning involving staffing, class sizes and student opportunities.
Those potential consequences are the district’s projections, not guaranteed outcomes if the measure fails.
How has the district changed since the MLO was approved?
Weld RE-5J has grown substantially since the years surrounding the 2020 vote.
According to the district’s enrollment figures, enrollment increased from 3,200 students in 2018-19 to 4,205 in 2025-26, an increase of about 31.4%.
The district also reports that its number of teachers increased by nearly 54% from 2020 to 2026.
During that period, the starting teacher salary increased from $39,857 in 2020 to $51,258 in 2026, according to the district. Weld RE-5J says benefits, insurance, materials and other operating costs have increased as well. (weldre5j.org)
Those figures help explain the district’s argument for deciding the future of the MLO before 2030, but they do not change the basic structure of the ballot question: voters are deciding whether the existing $4 million authorization should continue after its scheduled expiration.
How would the district account for the money?
Weld RE-5J says it will continue publishing MLO-related information through its financial transparency resources.
The district also says formal reports on the funding will be provided to the Board of Education, Long Range Task Force and District Accountability Committee.
Arguments for and against
Supporters argue that extending the MLO would provide predictable local funding for staff recruitment and retention, student safety and mental-health services, career preparation and early-childhood programs. They also argue that deciding before 2030 gives the district time to make longer-term staffing and budget decisions.
Opponents argue that the existing authorization does not expire until 2030 and that voters could reconsider the issue closer to that date. Some also object to extending the property-tax authorization indefinitely rather than allowing the 2020 measure to expire as originally scheduled.
Weld RE-5J summarizes arguments raised on both sides on its official MLO information page.
What does this mean for Johnstown?
Ballot Issue 5A is one of the most directly local measures in the 2026 voter guide.
Weld RE-5J serves Johnstown, Milliken and surrounding areas. Property owners within the school district currently contribute to the mill levy override, while students throughout the district attend schools and programs supported by district operating revenue.
For Johnstown voters within Weld RE-5J, the central question is not whether to impose an immediate new $4 million tax.
It is whether the existing $4 million annual property-tax authorization approved in 2020 should continue after it expires in 2030.
Official information
The complete 2026 ballot language can be found in Weld County’s official sample ballot.
Weld RE-5J also provides the resolution, financial background, enrollment figures, frequently asked questions and information about the existing mill levy overrides on its official Mill Levy Override page.