November 21, 2009
What's Inside:
St. Joseph School District increases its tax rate
St. Joseph School District taxpayers will see a slight increase between their 2007 and 2008 property tax bills.
Monday evening, the St. Joseph Board of Education decided to set the 2008 property tax rate at $3.98 per $100 of assessed valuation — a 5-cent increase from last year.
The owner of a home with a fair market value of $100,000 will pay $756.20 in district taxes this year, a $9.50 increase over last year.
The board set the portion of the tax that funds the district’s operating expenses at the highest rate allowed by state law, while the board set the portion of the tax that funds the district’s debt service fund (the fund that pays off bond projects) lower than the maximum allowed.
Janet Pullen, the district’s chief financial officer, said the recommendation to increase the rate was due in large part to a change in state law that essentially locks the district into the tax rate for two years. Without knowing the financial picture in a year, she thought that lowering the rate any more could be risky, given the new law.
The local assessed valuation increased, mostly because of the new pipeline in the south part of Buchanan County. As a result, the district will collect more from local property taxes in 2008 compared to 2007 — from $34.7 million to $36 million.
During a Thursday board committee meeting, board member Martin Rucker pointed out that in recent years, the district has voluntarily reduced its tax rate. Although the 2008 tax rate will increase from the 2007 tax rate, the 2008 tax rate is lower than the rates in 2004 and 2005.
When voters decided to up district property taxes by 63 cents per $100 of assessed valuation in April 2004, district officials said they’d prioritize keeping the overall tax rate down.
“We’ve kept our promise to voters,” Mr. Rucker said.
In April, the district plans to ask taxpayers to approve two property tax proposals: a proposal to renew the 63-cent property tax (this tax is included in the $3.98 tax) and a proposal for a new tax, a 20 to 25 cents per $100 of assessed valuation tax, to fund a plan to open and close schools.
Nancy Hull can be reached at nancyhull@npgco.com.
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i wouldn't mind paying this extra tax increase if i knew it wasn't going to pay for a $120k catering bill from sean's catering.
Strongly suggest everyone take a hard look at where the money is going and what it is paying for.
A 63 cent increase in '04, a 5 cent increase for '08 and a "proposal" for a tax "increase" of 20 to 25 cents per $100 of assessed valuation.
If tax payers could manipulate their incomes in this same manner it would be great, but we can't.
The school district should be no different than any other government or private entity in how it is required to manage and adjust it funding. Everyone wants to see the best possible education for our youth, however, this should not translate into providing a blank check. Focusing more on quality of the basics, versus gaining a bigger budget, is not a bad thing and often provides better results.