Denison School Board proposes lower property tax levy
/After a presentation on Monday night, the Denison School Board is proposing an overall property tax levy that will be just more than 34 cents lower than the current year’s levy.
The fiscal year 2024-2025 budget for Denison Community School District will go through two public hearings under a new state requirement.
The first one will take place at noon on March 25 in the district office. That budget presentation will cover only the property tax levies and will not address income tax surtaxes. It will show the following.
• The current overall property tax levy rate: $12.26376; it generated $5,924,688 in property taxes
• What the overall property tax levy would be if the dollars stayed the same as this year: $11.08692
• The proposed overall property tax levy: $11.91814; it would generate $6,367,186 in property taxes
Business Manager Scott Larson said it has been about 20 years since Denison’s property tax levy has been less than $12 per $1,000 assessed valuation.
The second public hearing, set for 5:30 p.m. on April 15, will present all aspects of the budget, including money raised through income surtax.
In compiling the budget, Larson used 2.5% as the anticipated increase in state supplemental assistance. That percent increase would add $191 to the current per-student cost of $7,635, making it $7,826 for fiscal year 2024-2025.
Larson pointed out that a 2.5% increase is what the governor is proposing but he believes the legislature has talked about a 3% increase.
The per-student cost is multiplied by this year’s enrollment of 1,958.5 full-time equivalent students to generate $15,327,221. That figure is $143,580 less than the current year because enrollment dropped by 67.8 full-time equivalent students as of the certified enrollment count day in October.
Because of the decrease in enrollment and the low state supplementary assistance, the Denison Community School District proposes to use the budget guarantee for the next fiscal year. The budget guarantee means that the district will receive at least 101% of the funding it received this year, resulting in nearly $300,000, all raised through property tax.
Following are some other highlights of the budget as presented by Larson.
• The combined district cost plus the preschool is proposed to be $23,255,291, up $235,221 compared to the current year.
• Property valuations are up 10.78% district wide.
• The general fund levy is proposed to be $9.73717. It is $10.19916 this year.
• Through the Instructional Support Levy, districts can generate up to 10% of their combined district cost through property tax or income surtax or a combination of both. This year the income surtax rate is 3% and is generating $309,161. It is proposed to be 6% and will raise $640,474. The tax levy rate is $1.14 and raised $566,950. It is proposed to be 54 cents and would generate $292,369.
• Last year the school district raised $500,000 through a management fund levy of $1.02. The management fund pays for early retirement, unemployment and property insurance. Larson said property insurance this year cost $475,000. He anticipates it will increase again and asked the school board to consider $650,000 in the management fund next year, raised through a tax levy of $1.20.
• The board approved Physical Plant and Equipment Levy is 33 cents every year. This year it raised $163,161. Next year it will raise $178,525 due to the increase in property valuations.
• The debt service levy is 70 cents and generated $348,857. It is proposed to be 64 cents and would raise $348,082.
Larson said the numbers he presented could change slightly depending on what the state decides for the state supplemental assistance and if the Department of Management makes any adjustments.
Information provided by Denison Community School District Business Manager Scott Larson shows the general fund revenue sources and expenditures by object for fiscal year 2022-2023. He noted that the percentages listed don't change much year to year. The information is provided to show where the school receives its money and what it is spent on.
GENERAL FUND REVENUE SOURCES
State aid: 51.56%
Property taxes: 18.43%
Other state sources: 14.50%
Other local sources: 7.01%
Federal programs, 6.21%
Income surtax: 2.28%
GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES BY OBJECT
Salaries: 62.6%
Benefits: 18.0%
Supplies: 7.3%
Purchased services: 7.1%
Other items (AEA): 3.8%
Property: 1.2%
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