November 18, 2022 | Issue #13

You Mean My Taxes Went Down?

Has the portion of the annual local property tax bill as influenced by Yorkville School increased or decreased over the past 9 years?

Answer:  The portion of your property tax bill as influenced by the Yorkville School District decreased.

Please read the following for explanations and data and how the Tax Rate (a.k.a. The Mill Rate) has changed over 9 years.

Can public schools just raise taxes at will?

Not anymore.  Prior to 1993 schools could raise the levy and impose more taxes on the public with few constraints.  These dollars could be used for salaries, school supplies, chalkboards, parking lots, bussing transportation, textbooks, and more.

But not after 1993.  In 1993 revenue limits were put into place.

What are revenue limits?

Revenue limits are state-imposed controls on the amount of money a Wisconsin district can receive in state aid and local property taxes. Revenue limits were established in 1993 by state policymakers as a means of controlling property taxes. 

Can a public school exceed the revenue limits?

Yes, but they must ask the local public to do so in the form of an operations referendum.

Has Yorkville ever asked the public to exceed the revenue limit?

Yes.  In April 2018, the Yorkville School District asked for permission to exceed the district’s state revenue limit by $670,000 per year for five years, to support general district operations, including the following:

When does the above $670,000 per year run out?

The District is in its fifth year of five total years of benefiting from these additional dollars.  In other words, by June 2023, these dollars are no longer on the tax roll and no longer available to the District.

How does the State determine the revenue limit for each school district?

In the simplest of terms, the Revenue Limit allowed for each District is based on many factors.  The main factor is that of the District’s student enrollment.  Student enrollment is entered into a formula, along with State Aid, resulting in a cap on local property taxes.

What is the Tax Levy?

The tax levy is the total amount of property tax levied (a.k.a. assessed) to municipalities in the school district to fund school operations. The maximum tax levy amount, other than referendum-approved long-term debt or long-term debt incurred prior to 1993, is determined through the state’s revenue cap (limit) formula. 

Per State Statute:

• In August - The tax levy is approved by the Board of Education.
• In September - Student enrollment is determined on the 3rd Friday and reported to the State.
• In October -  The tax levy is adjusted by the Board of Education based on September student enrollment and final equalized property values. 
• Then - Department of Public Instruction (DPI) certifies the district’s state equalization aid amount for the current fiscal year, which is received by the school district the next fiscal year. 

What is Equalized Valuation?

In a sense, this is the value of taxpayers property.

More accurately and more specifically, equalized valuation is the fair market value of all properties within a school district, as determined by the Wisconsin Department of Revenue. The Wisconsin Department of Revenue uses property sales information to determine a municipality’s equalized “fair market” valuation. This information is reported to the school district in October of each year.  The district distributes the certified (approved) tax levy among the municipalities, according to the proportion of equalized value each municipality has, in comparison to the total equalized value of the school district.

Equalized valuation plays a very important role in determining the school mill (tax) rate. The district then calculates the actual mill (tax) rate per thousand dollars of equalized valuation. 

What is the Mill Rate?

The Mill Rate is the Tax Rate.

To calculate the school mill (tax) rate, the schools use the tax levy certified (approved) by the School Board of Education in October, and divides that amount by the total equalized value of the district. The mill rate is defined as the rate one thousand dollars of equalized valuation will raise in property taxes.

THE BIG QUESTION!

So, with all of the above information, does this mean that the Mill Rate is the number that tells me what I pay annually for school taxes?

YES!

What is the Mill Rate for 2022-2023?

The Board approved a total tax levy of $4,463,474 to fund the 2022-2023 budget. To determine the rate per thousand, the district divides the total levy of $4,463,474 by the estimated equalized value of the district, $700,657,183. This produces a projected mill (tax) rate of 0.00637041 or $6.37.    

How is the Mill Rate Calculated (in table form)?

What has the Mill Rate been for the past 9 years?

Does all of this information include the 2007 Construction Referendum when the new wing (gymnasium, cafeteria, band, choir, library, and offices, were built?

Yes.  These taxes are included in the tax levy.

When do we “taxpayers” pay off the portion of our debt for the 2007 gymnasium, cafeteria, band, choir, library, and offices?

This is fully paid off this coming March - 2023.

Final Comments from Superintendent Rollefson

As a 35 year public educator, I am so proud to be part of the Yorkville School District.  Our academic successes based on Wisconsin test scores, positive open enrollment, and fiscal responsibility is tremendous.

I had the wonderful opportunity to lead the Yorkville School District through a new Strategic Plan to continue and improve upon the success and support.

I hope this information was valuable for you, the supportive citizens and taxpayers of our community.  

I believe that it is a two way street in which a strong school is supported by a strong community, AND a strong community is supported by a strong school.  Thank You!

If you have any questions or comments, it is beneficial to me to hear from you.  My email address is mark.rollefson@yorkville.k12.wi.us.