St. Clair County Community College will ask voters Tuesday, Aug. 3, to renew one-half mill for college operations.
The renewal will cover a four-year period, July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2015.

Because of Headlee Amendment rollback requirements, the renewal request actually will be slightly less than half a mill (0.4951). The millage would raise an estimated $2.7 million for the college in the 2011 college tax year.
The one-half mill originally was approved by voters in 1999 and renewed in 2003 and 2007.

The renewal will be on the ballot for voters in the St. Clair County Community College District, which roughly follows the same geographic boundaries as the St. Clair County Regional Educational Service Agency.

The millage would continue to provide programs and services that meet community needs and prepare students for successful careers.

That includes:

• Maintaining and expanding the job training and retraining for St. Clair County residents.
• Preserving and expanding transfer and occupational programs to meet student and community needs.
• Expanding bachelor's degree and master's degree offerings accessible locally through SC4's University Center partners.
• Keeping pace with and providing the technology, equipment and buildings needed to remain competitive, meet instructional and student needs, and stay ahead of industry trends to keep students well-prepared for the work force.

Here are some examples of how the college has used the money from the one-half mill collected for the past four years:

• Adding five new bachelor's and master's degree opportunities locally through the college's University Center partners.
• Creating new associate degrees, certificates and training leading to high-demand, high-wage jobs.
• Enhancing campus safety and security by adding improved parking lot and sidewalk lighting, security cameras and emergency call boxes; expanding Internet bandwidth on campus; replacing computers; and expanding online classes.
• Adding four "green" roofs on campus as part of roof replacement projects; restoring the historic look of the Main Building with new energy-efficient windows; replacing the North Building heating, ventilation and cooling system with an energy-efficient, environmentally sustainable geothermal system; improving parking lots with new pavement and bio swales and rain gardens that filter water runoff and serve as a living lab for students.

Because this is a renewal, it won’t increase tax rates. The roughly one-half mill works out to 50 cents per $1,000 of taxable home value, or about $25 a year in property taxes for a homeowner whose home has a market value of $100,000.

For details, visit www.sc4.edu/millage or call Shawn Starkey at (810) 989-5767.