The Utah County Assessor's Office has revalued property in Orem. Next year, Orem residents will contribute about 29 percent of the Alpine District's local tax base, Bennett said.

"They're about even," he said. "That's sort of a wash."

Numbers may change once Bennett calculates other configurations of an Orem school district.

Bennett is also studying the feasibility of an Orem-Lindon district, an Orem-Vineyard district, an Orem-Lindon-Vineyard district and an Orem-Lindon-Vineyard-Pleasant Grove district.

Bennett had not yet calculated the financial effects to property owners left in the Alpine District if Orem splits, he said.

Bennett is charging Orem and neighboring cities $75 an hour for the feasibility study with a maximum fee of $9,000, he said.

If Orem, Lindon, Vineyard and Pleasant Grove form a district, there will be about 25,000 students, he said.

"Orem only has 15,900 students," Bennett said.

Beau Sorensen, an Orem resident who is organizing the effort to put a school-district division question on the November ballot, said: "It would still be good to bring it to a vote, have the voters decide."

"It may cost more," Sorensen said. "But depending on how much more, it may be worth it to have more control over the schools."

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E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com