Apparently, the board members present felt there had been enough discussion at previous board meetings and public budget forums.

So, with no further discussion or comment and with one member absent, the Northshore School District Board of Directors unanimously approved just over $3 million in adjustments to their upcoming 2010-2011 budget.

At the same time, officials might be inching closer to placing what’s been called a supplemental levy on the ballot of the August primary.

In terms of the budget, Northshore officials are anticipating a need to close a $2.9 million shortfall in state funding. During various budget discussions, Superintendent Larry Francois said his staff came up with roughly $3.1 million in adjustments in an attempt to ensure the system’s books balance.

Instead of operating cuts, Francois’ major proposal is for a one-time expenditure of $2.2 million from the district’s surplus funds. Francois stated the move would allow the district to maintain a fund balance of roughly $5 million as mandated by school-board policy.

Other, much smaller spending adjustments would come by way of several additional steps, such as rearranging a special-education summer program and some further consolidation of bus routes, reducing personnel and overhead costs.

In terms of any operating changes, only the special education plan attracted some negative public feedback at one of three so-called budget workshops held last month. The special education plan will bring together under one roof a summer program meant to help students retain what they learn during the normal school year. In past summers, different grade-level programs were held in different locations.

Northshore Communications Director Leanna Albrecht said a full budget package will be presented to the board over the summer, with final approval required prior to the start of the next school year.

Regarding the possible levy, Albrecht added the board plans on making a decision during its May 11 meeting.

Board President Dawn McCravey has been out of town, but said last month the opinions expressed at what were then upcoming public discussions would play a big part in deciding what happens next. In a prepared statement, Francois said more than 1,000 students, staff, parents and community members had expressed input on the budget and the levy.

That input came by way of the budget workshops sponsored by the district at its high schools, along with an online survey. Albrecht said 82 percent of survey respondents backed putting the levy question to voters, while 83 percent of the workshop participants felt the same.

She added about 200 people participated in the workshops, while 759 took the online survey.

Francois unveiled the levy idea to the school board in mid-April. The measure would take advantage of a change in state law, one that legislators adopted the same time as the state budget adjustments.

The new law has two key provisions, one of which allows for the supplemental levy. By state mandate, any Washington school district’s local revenues can equal no more than a specific percentage of its overall budget. The new rules allow for that percentage to increase if voters give their OK.

In Northshore, passage would increase local collections from 24.9 percent to 28.9 percent of the district’s total budget. Depending on the size of the system’s overall revenue, district estimates put supplemental levy collections at between $5 million and $12 million over four years starting in 2011. School officials have indicated they do not believe the higher-end estimate is likely to come to fruition.

But if the $12 million mark was hit, the district estimates the cost of the supplemental issue to property owners at 20 cents per $1,000 in valuation, or about $80 annually.