Now that you’ve received your tax bill…
On April 5, 2022, voters graciously voted to support the School District of Abbotsford’s $1.5 million dollar referendum. The funds are borrowed through a short-term note of only four years and were used to help fund the FEMA addition. The addition includes a FEMA storm shelter for the school and community, as well as three 4K classrooms, a 4K collaboration space, multipurpose gymnasium, large conference/distance learning room, and expanded elementary lunch room space. The project is going well and the building is slated to be opened in June 2023.
During the referendum process, I explained the potential tax impact of the referendum. Last year’s mil rate was $9.72 per $1,000 or $1,944 per $200,000 of property value. The projected mil rate with passing the referendum was expected to be $9.60 for 2022-2023 and 20232024 and would continue to decrease in 2024-2025 as the 2007 referendum debt is paid off.
The District is able to control our levy (the dollars we ask for). We do not have control over property values. The school tax rate is determined by dividing the school levy by the equalized (fair market) value of district properties.
Your property value will impact how your taxes are calculated. The two components used to determine property value in Wisconsin are “assessed” and “equalized” valuation. Assessed valuation is property value as determined by the local municipal assessor on January 1 in any given year. Each year the State Department of Revenue (DOR) applies an equalization factor to the municipal assessed value to ensure that taxes are spread equally amongst property owners. The adjustment factor incorporates, among other elements, actual property sales in the municipality during the past year and is meant to ensure each type of property has comparable value regardless of local assessment practices and results in the equalized value (fair market value) of a property. The October 1 School Tax Apportionment Value Certification is used to divide the District levy amongst the various municipalities in the District and determine municipal tax bills. The October 2022 values are used to set school levies for the 2022-2023 school year. This year the District experienced an 11.9 percent increase in equalized value. That was our largest increase in the last 10 years. The 10 year average is 0.29%.
The School Board, understanding that an 11.9% property valuation increase would have a significant impact on taxpayers, actually lowered the levy by -0.08%. The end result was negating an 11.9% property valuation increase by lowering the mil rate to $8.68, almost $1.00 less than projected. The goal was to keep the amount paid in taxes flat in our current economy.
How did that play out on tax bills? When the valuations came out from the DOR, there was a shift in tax burden. The City of Abbotsford and Townships of Frankfort, Holton, Hull, and Johnson all saw their valuations go up 0-11% (less than average in the District), resulting in a tax savings. The Village of Curtiss and Townships of Colby, Hoard, and Mayville all saw their valuations go up 20-22% (more than average in the District), resulting in an increase in taxes.
The School Board was forward thinking in accounting for the unusual property valuation increase but it cannot control how the DOR applies the adjustment factor for each municipality. The District has a history of being fiscally responsible and mindful of our taxpayers and will continue to do so in the future. We are extremely grateful for the community support of our great school as we continue to strive to be a school district with excellent staff, programs, and student achievement.
