Property taxes will slightly rise with the increase of the Lawrence school district’s mill levy this year, which the school board initially approved Monday.
With a vote of 6-0, board members on Monday unanimously approved the district’s maximum budget for publication for the 2024-25 year. The tentative new mill levy is 52.252, which is a .042-mill increase over last year’s approved rate of 52.210.
Although the increase is fairly small, most property owners saw their assessed valuations increase significantly. The district’s total assessed valuation for the general fund has increased by about 6.7%.
The budget includes a local option budget that operates at 33% of the general fund, or 14.517 mills, which is the maximum allowed by the state; 8 mills for capital outlay; and 8.301 mills for bond and interest payments on debt services.
The maximum amount the district can spend this year will be set at approximately $215.7 million, included in the board’s approval Monday. Executive Director of Finance Cynde Frick said publishing a large budget amount can appear intimidating but is necessary for planning ahead.
“That’s the bad thing about publishing high — it captures — it has the ability to capture any expenditure that we might have or need to have,” Frick said. “But it does look surprisingly high.”
Frick said if the district were to set a lower budget, it could be at risk of getting a budget violation if spending goes over its limit. A violation like that would be included in the annual audit of the district, which could potentially have a negative effect on state funding.
The district will receive approximately $2 million in additional special education funding from the state this year. Board member Shannon Kimball said that for example, the jump from last year’s approximately $29 million on special education to this year’s $40 million of budgeted expenditures doesn’t mean the district is going to be spending $11 million more on that department.
Setting a high maximum budget allows the district to use any cash balance that’s available, Frick said.
Additionally, per-pupil funding from the state is increasing by 5.7%, to $5,378 from $5,088.
The board can lower tax rates from the maximum mill levy voted on Monday, but they cannot increase rates beyond that amount.
Public hearings on the budget are scheduled for the next board meeting on Monday, Sept. 9 at district offices, 110 McDonald Drive. The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. See the presentation for Monday’s meeting attached to the agenda on BoardDocs.
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Maya Hodison (she/her), equity reporter, can be reached at mhodison@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
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