About 30 residents of the Bonduel School District on Monday reviewed financial estimates for the 2014-15 school year, including a projected tax levy increase of $264,204.
Superintendent Patrick Rau said a $200,000 reduction in state funding has created the need for the projected tax increase, but he expects the proposed levy will decrease when the board has final enrollment numbers and statewide equalization valuation results in October.
“These numbers are estimates as far as our state aid and local property tax levy, because three of the things they are based on we have to wait for,” Rau said.
According to the budget, last year’s property tax levy was $4,410,642. With the proposed increase, it would climb 6 percent, to $4,674,846.
The tax rate is projected to increase from $9.93 per $1,000 of equalized valuation to $10.52 per $1,000. The owner of a $100,000 home who paid $993 in school taxes last year would pay $1,052 this year, according to the projections.
The proposed budget is based on a zero increase in equalized property value. Property values increased 2.35 percent from 2012-13 to 2013-14. If property values increase more than expected, it would mean a lower tax rate. If values decrease, the tax rate could go higher.
Rau said the district is facing a $275,000 deficit. Alternatives to a tax increase to offset the deficit would require the district to cut programs and positions, he said.
“If we are faced with the situation where we have to reduce our programming with NWTC (Northeast Wisconsin Technical College) or our sports offerings, one of our fears is that (the district’s) open enrollment deficit would get larger as students leave to go elsewhere,” Rau said.
The district’s projected enrollment is 863, about 20 students fewer than last year. With open enrollment, Rau said he expects the district to have a deficit of 35-40 students at the start of the school year, which has been consistent over the last five years.
He said around 111 students have applied out of Bonduel and 75 have applied in this year, but he expects those numbers to reduce as students and parents change their minds about where they will attend school.
Rau said the estimated cost per pupil, which excludes food service and transportation costs, is estimated at $10,148. Bonduel’s spending is the third highest per pupil, compared with the eight other districts in the county, but in CESA 8, Bonduel is 21st out of 26 in spending.
Board member Dale Bergsbaken said the district needs to offer quality programs and teachers to stay competitive with other schools and to maintain a healthy enrollment.
“You have to look at it business-wise,” Bergsbaken said. “When kids graduate, that is our final product, and without good employees and without good staff, you don’t do that. You can’t always go top quality, but you have to give them good things that work.”
Rau said 75-85 percent of the budget goes toward salaries and benefits every year.
Also included in the budget is a debt service of $830,116 and a technology referendum of $150,000.
Residents expressed concerns over whether the Common Core Standards implemented by statewide will help improve scores in the low-scoring math department. They said some districts are moving away from the standards because they feel they are not effective.
Curriculum Director Peggy Jones said the Common Core Standards, which define expectations for scores in mathematics and English/language arts, will help the district, because they lay out specific expectations for each grade level, help the schools determine what educational materials they will buy and give teachers a sense of direction.
“As far as the staff goes and the curriculum committee, what we have found with studying those standards is they are very helpful to us in what we teach to our students as far as content,” Jones said.
Besides approving the tax levy, the audience also adopted a pay rate for board members. After a motion to lower the rate to $80 failed, individuals voted to keep the rate at $85, which has been in effect since 2008.
Other successfully passed resolutions authorized the board to engage in legal counsel, sell or dispose of used surplus property and set a date for the 2015 annual meeting.
Categories
