This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Some lawmakers are hoping a bill they passed out of committee Wednesday will help future school district splits go more smoothly.
Under HB195, approved by the House Education Committee, property owners in school districts that split after approving a bond would have to continue to pay off the bond at a uniform tax rate. That would be a change from what happened when the Canyons district split off from Jordan in 2009. In that split, Canyons was required to pay off 58 percent of what was left of a $281 million bond approved in 2003, while Jordan pays off the rest, based on property values at the time.
"I'm hoping that if another district chooses to do this that we can take some of the anger out of it," said bill sponsor Kenneth Sumsion, R-American Fork. He said he's also working on other bills intended to add more specificity to the law should other districts split in the future.
The committee passed the bill unanimously, with four members absent. It now moves to the House floor.