Proposed by Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, the concept was enthusiastically received Monday by legislators on a task force designed to determine how to more fairly fund school buildings. The proposed bill is particularly timely because some voters are set to go to the polls on Nov. 6 to decide whether to break away from the Jordan School District, the state's largest.

"You can't move forward with these splits until you have some equalization," Buttars said.

Next Tuesday, residents of Sandy, Cottonwood Heights, Draper, Midvale, Alta and some parts of unincorporated Salt Lake County will decide whether to start a new, east-side district. Similarly, West Jordan residents will vote on whether to form a new district within the city's boundaries.

At issue is the significant tax increase that could potentially be required for many west-side residents to pay for the remaining district's needs if Jordan splits. Legislators hope to create a new system that more fairly distributes the tax burden for school construction and renovation throughout the state.

Just what that system will look like remains to be seen, but legislators are discussing multiple options with district business officials.

Buttars also proposed the creation of the Utah School Facilities Board, which would allocate dollars for school buildings based on district needs. A bill is expected to be considered in the coming weeks.

The equalization task force is scheduled to next meet on Nov. 19.

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* JULIA LYON can be contacted at jlyon@sltrib.com or 801-257-8748.