Slight increase In School Taxes For 2012-13 School Year

The Hamilton School Board certified its tax rate on Monday for the 2012-13 school year, which amounts to an slight increase over last year. 

The tax rate will be $10.40 per $1,000 of equalized property value, a 2.8 percent increase.  The owner of a home valued at $300,000 will pay about $84 more than last year in school taxes when bills are mailed out in December, officials estimate during the annual meeting this summer. 

The total budget is $49.1 million — an increase of more than 1.5 percent compared to this year’s budget. The budget is still about 2 percent less than it was two years ago. The budget calls for a property tax levy of $31.5 million.

"The proposed tax levy is the most they’ll allow us to collect next school year without a referendum," Business Services Assistant Superintendent Bryan Ruud explained during the district's annual meeting in June.

Earlier this week, the Department of Public Instruction released its aid report that indicated the district will receive $17,069,724 from the state, $527,355 more than it did last year.

"The calculation is relatively complicated," Businesses Services Assistant Superintendent Bryan Ruud said. "Basically the equalized aid is equalized upon wealth. It's property value behind each student." 

The aid amount change is due in part to the district's property value decreasing by 2.84 percent and the district underspending its budget last year, according to Ruud.