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Superintendent Courtney Goode said Tuesday that there has been no change of heart among trustees since June 16, when the board decided not to continue with its ad hoc parcel tax exploratory committee.

Ending the tax exploratory committee also eliminated any potential steps such as polling.

“The board generally preferred to wait and revisit a possible parcel tax ballot initiative in 2028,” Goode said. “Our current economic uncertainty was a prevailing concern among the board.”

The district’s parcel tax expires on June 30, 2029. The tax rate is about $560 per parcel with an annual 3% increase.

Trustees said there is too much uncertainty in district finances and in funding changes statewide and nationally.

“The continuing underperformance of our revenues and overperformance of our expense projections are deeply concerning,” trustee Kevin Saavedra said.

Given that, Saavedra said, “we are set with the parcel tax for another three years. I don’t feel comfortable trying to make that call now.”

Saavedra said economic conditions might occur in the next three years that would necessitate an increase in the tax, not just a straight renewal.

In February, initial poll results for a straight renewal were just under the two-thirds approval rating needed to pass. With a margin of error, the odds were not favorable to proceed.

Trustee Emily Uhlhorn said she favors getting new poll results over the summer to see if the voters might be more approving.

She said the success in the June 2 primary for parcel taxes and bond measures among the “feeder districts” — TK-8 school districts in Mill Valley, Kentfield, Sausalito Marin City, Larkspur and Ross Valley — indicate that voters are more open to supporting schools at the moment.

“At least we should do some polling and get more information before we make a decision,” Uhlhorn said.

Trustee Jenny Holden said it would be a short window to mount a campaign and mobilize the community, especially if there was no real urgency, as there was in the Ross Valley and Mill Valley districts.

Ross Valley schools were facing potential school closures and a state takeover, and Mill Valley was facing a more than $2 million cost to add a full grade of children in transitional kindergarten.

Board president Cynthia Roenisch agreed. She noted that in the Mill Valley School District, volunteers knocked on more than 5,000 doors to help pass the Measure E parcel tax in June. The measure won a 75% majority.

“It’s apples and oranges,” said Roenisch, comparing the Mill Valley and Tam Union districts. “We would have to knock on 45,000 doors.”

Earlier this year, the district cut $2.2 million from its 2026-27 budget of about $133 million. That kept the reserves level at 17%, the district’s target minimum, according to Corbett Elsen, the assistant superintendent for finance and operations,

But for 2027 and 2028, the projected reserves of 20.43% and 23.63%, respectively, do not include any potential union staff contracts, which are still to be negotiated, Elsen said. The cost of a 1% raise for staff is $770,000, Elsen said.

“It’s fiscally sustainable, but uncertainty is pervasive,” Elsen said. The uncertainties include declining enrollment for the next eight years, rising costs for utilities and services of about 5.8% more a year, and inflation, he said.

Substantial reserves, especially for a large district such as Tam Union, are seen as necessary in case of emergencies, such as a natural disaster.