Tax rate raised to $10.84 per $1,000
By Robert Cloud
Property owners in the Waupaca School District will see a slight increase in their mill rate than was initially estimated in early October.
The 2018-19 school property tax rate will rise 5 cents from the estimated $10.79 to the actual $10.84 per $1,000 in value.
The school board approved a tax levy that was increased from the proposed $16.4 million to $16.66 million in support of a $34 million budget.
According to Carl Hayek, the district business manager, Waupaca learned it will lose $164,000 in state aid.
At the Oct. 9 school board meeting, Hayek estimated general state aid for 2018-19 would be $8.55 million.
Before the Oct. 30 school budget hearing, the district learned its certified state aid will be approximately $8.38 million.
The district also learned its enrollment was up for this year.
The estimated enrollment had been 2,077 students, but the actual third Friday count in September was 2,091.
The higher enrollment numbers raised the district’s revenue cap by $256,000.
Hayek recommended taxing to the revenue limit and placing the $92,000 surplus into the district’s fund balance.
The district’s total fund balance at the end of the 2018-19 school year is projected to be $8.7 million.
Hayek said the $92,000 surplus will give the district an opportunity to rebuild its fund balance, which was reduced by $683,000 in the 2017-18 school year due to unplanned spending.