D115 Leaders Explain Property Tax Rates

officials issued the following news release on Monday afternoon:

As Yorkville residents receive their property tax bills, some are asking the question, “Why have my tax rates gone up?”

“Since Yorkville School District 115 is the largest portion of that tax bill, we feel that it is important to explain the process to concerned community members,” said Jacqui Parisi, District 115 business manager.

According to Parisi, when assessments drop in a county, the tax rate goes up because the same amount of money must be collected, along with the increase in the consumer price index (CPI).

 “This holds true for all taxing bodies in the county, such as village municipalities, libraries, park districts, etc.” said Parisi. “The phenomenon of a tax rate increase when assessments drop, applies to any tax-capped district. Yorkville 115 has not done anything differently, but has, in fact, taken action to reduce the expected $1.1 million 2011 fiscal year deficit,” she said.

“By law, every school district is allowed to levy, or ask for, more taxes than they will collect, based on a formula utilizing the assessment of a property and the consumer price index (CPI),” she said.

“Even though we levy at a higher amount than needed, the District only receives the amount of money to which it is entitled. In the fall, when the levy must be certified for Kendall County, we do not know what the new cumulative assessment will be,” she said.

“Because of that, every school district in Illinois must levy higher than the amount needed to operate, or the funds to run the District may not be available,” said Parisi. “If we lower the levy, we will never receive any lost revenue to which we are entitled, and must have, to continue maintaining reasonable class sizes and offering the highest quality programs for our students. It is important for every taxpayer to understand that even though District 115’s tax levy increased, we do not collect any additional monies than are allowed.”

“The Board of Education continues to be committed to providing the highest quality educational program for the families of Yorkville,” said David Dockstader, president of the District 115 Board of Education.  “At the same time, it is our duty to be vigilant with our fiscal responsibility on behalf of our community members, and we work very hard to strike a balance between the two,” he said.

According to Dockstader, 82% of the District’s revenue stream comes from property taxes, with 1.9% coming from Federal aid; 4.1% from General State aid, 8.3% from Other State; and 3.1% from Other Local sources.

This revenue breaks down into expenditures through eight categories. These expenses and percentages are Salaries, 44.4%; Benefits, 18.6%; Purchased Services 13.8%; Supplies and Materials, 8.8%; Capital Outlay, 0.8%; Other Objects, 12.7%; Non-Capitalized Equipment, 0.4%; and Provision for Contingencies, 0.5%.

“We want our community members to have their questions answered regarding District 115’s portion of the property tax bill, so we welcome any questions Yorkville residents might have concerning these issues,” said Dockstader.