JCPS board keeps tax rate steady for now

After hearing from a string of speakers arguing both sides, the Jefferson County Board of Education voted Monday night to keep tax rates the same for fiscal year 2015 – the first time in seven years property taxes for schools won't go up.

The unanimous vote came after Superintendent Donna Hargens said the district could avoid a tax hike and still serve students sufficiently, recommending the rate remain at 71 cents per $100 of assessed real estate and personal property, or $710 for every $100,000 of value.

The school board had the option of raising rates up to 73 cents, which would have brought $413 million in revenue. Instead, keeping the rate at 71 cents will bring in $402 million, according to district documents. More than $370 million would be used for instructional and operational costs in a $1.3 billion budget.

Hargens said the district's one-time $14 million shortfall for 2015 can be covered by a fund balance, leading to "no need to request additional revenue."

But while taxpayers are getting a break this year, Hargens warned the board before the meeting that next year the district will likely need to raise taxes next year.

Officials cited areas of rising costs including teacher pension contributions and state mandated teacher pay increases will add an estimated $19.8 million in costs in fiscal year 2015-16.

"We'll have to make the case" next year for more funding, Hargens told school board members during a work session, but said this year "we're confident we can achieve our goals" without an increase.

Jefferson County Teachers Association President Brent McKim urged the school board to approve the maximum amount allowed by the state to increase classroom resources for extended learning for struggling students, technology and other areas.

He disputed Hargens' contention the district had adequate resource and said the decision would make it harder to raise taxes in the future, saying it "lowers the baseline for every year after."

School board member Carol Ann Haddad said she was supported no increase, saying "people are calling me from my district saying, 'We really can't do this.' "

Board member David Jones said an improving economy means the "really good news is we don't need to change the rate we tax ourselves to get a 3.5 percent increase in revenue."

Chief Financial Officer Cordelia Hardin said the district's $1.3 billion working budget for 2014-15, which she said is "not out of line" for such large districts, is set for a final approval on Sept. 22. Along with property taxes, the district would also get $25 million from a motor vehicle tax.

A public hearing prior to the tax rate vote drew more than a dozen speakers including parents, activists and union members.

Speaker Dolores Delahanty argued that fully funding schools was critical to producing prepared graduates. Bonifacio Aleman, a parent and advocate, said taxes "the most effective investment we can make for our children," and pays for itself in the future by increasing employment rates.

Others noted the increase was only $20 a year on $100,000 of value, and decried the low pay of JCPS workers making $18,000 a year.

Critics of a tax increase cited the hundreds of administrators the state audit found were making $100,000 or more. Some questioned the academic results that previous tax hikes have produced.

"I can no longer remain silent while you nickel and dime us to death," parent Tulio Tourinho said.

For many years between 2005 and 2011, JCPS has levied the maximum rate allowed by the state, up to 4 percent. Under state law, if a higher tax rate brings a revenue increase of more than 4 percent, a public referendum is required.

Opponents of tax increases have criticized the district's central office spending – something highlighted during a state audit earlier this year. But board members pointed out that the district reduced such spending before the audit from about $267.3 million in 2011 to $238.7 million in 2014.

Since the audit, the district has undertaken a review of salaries, shortened school-supply lists and eliminated the use of some employee take-home cars.

"We're taking it on and making changes," Haddad said.

Follow Chris Kenning on Twitter at ckenning_cj.