If the Jordan School Board decides to approve the property-tax increase it is considering, residents of the school district will be paying taxes at the second highest rate in the state.
That means the owner of a $75,000 house would be paying about $35 more per year. The board is considering the $231 million budget and Tuesday night set a truth-in-taxation hearing for Aug. 4 at 7 p.m. At that hearing the board may give the budget final approval.The tax increase doesn't provide any funds for new school construction. The higher rate is proposed to generate about $3 million for building improvements.
The district's seismic committee recommended the closing of nine buildings and also found half the buildings in the district have areas rated poor and very poor. The average age of a building in the district is 22 years.
Superintendent Raymond Whittenburg said the budget proposal for 1992-93 is set to maintain the current level of programs and services. He added that contract negotiations with employees were not complete when the budget was tentatively approved.
The district will have to wait for a final student head count in the fall to know the actual amount they'll receive from the state, he said.
Because the budget provides for no new buildings, another source of revenue will have to be found, Whittenburg said. The finance committee recommended the board increase taxes over the next five years by $161 million, most of which would be raised by bond elections. Jordan taxpayers are currently paying off bonds that should be retired in 1996, he said.
The finance committee's report was presented to the board Tuesday night, and Whittenburg said the only part of that report that's incorporated into the budget are the pay-as-you-go projects. The decision of whether to raise money through a bond election will be decided by voters.
Only one resident spoke against the tax increase. Mike Megeath said he came to give the board the "plight of a poor, beleaguered" taxpayer.
"Thirty-five dollars a year to me means a doctor's appointment I can't make," he said. "We have to start here, now and work with what we have."
Howard Hedley, a representative of the Utah Taxpayers Association, said the organization would support the new tax increases if the board looked for "creative" ways to educate students. Two options he asked them to consider are the use of vouchers and competency-based education.
The association was involved in the alternative-housing and finance committees, and Hedley said they understood the need for the tax increase.
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Jordan schoold budget
Students 68,368 Schools 70
Largest Expenditures
(in millions) 1991-92 Proposed 92-93
General operations $173.9 $178.1
Health & accident insurance $15.3 $17.7
Capital outlay $13.1 $11.6
Food service $11.1 $10.7
Largest Revenue Sources:
local sources** 37% 37%
State Funds 60% 59%
Federal Fund 5% 4%
**Mainly properly taxes
Property Tax Rate:
1991-92 .008637 1992-93 .009299
Property tax hike: yes
An average increase of about $35.00 on a $75,000 home.