Dist. 303 school board approves 5.95% increase to 2022 property tax levy despite objections

To the dismay of those speaking at the St. Charles District 303 School Board meeting Dec. 12, board members approved a 5.95% increase to the school district’s tax levy for 2022.

Illinois property taxes are paid one year in arrears. The proposed $180 million tax levy is a 5.95% increase over last year’s levy, which includes debt service.

The vote was 6-1 with school board member Ed McNally voting “no.”

During a public hearing on the levy, several taxpayers spoke against the proposed levy.

“I think that before you consider any kind of tax increase, I suggest that you all go back to your staff and you find out how they developed their budget,” James Whittington said in addressing school board members. “Go through every line item. You’ve got to cut out the fat. Because all of us here, we’re doing that every day.”

Taxpayer Diana Soltess said the school board should make serious cuts to programs that are unnecessary, inappropriate and not wanted by its citizen base.

“Please remain in budget, teach the basics and raise those test scores,” Soltess said.

Soltess previously has said she would like the district to focus on test scores and subjects such as reading, writing, arithmetic and U.S. history along with life skills such as personal financial management.

Before voting to approve the levy, Matthew Kuschert said board members “sometimes have to make some very challenging decisions as a board and it’s not something that we take lightly whatsoever.”

“All of us live in this district as well. Many of us have children in this district and in these schools,” he said. “And we are taking great measures to reduce costs to the best of our ability. Rest assured, we do not make these decisions lightly and we recognize the strain that a lot of families, and certainly us sitting up here as well, have experienced.”

During the board’s Business Services Committee meeting last month, Justin Attaway, the district’s assistant superintendent of business services, said he expects the Kane County Clerk to reduce the levy increase to about 5.41% when it is actually extended to the community. He said the levy’s impact on tax bills is largely dependent on an individual homeowner’s property assessment.

“The actual increase or decrease to tax bills is calculated by the county and is influenced by a number of factors, including the fluctuation of the ratio between residential property and commercial property, changes to individual property values as compared to the entire property value of the district and the final amount of new growth,” Attaway had said.

This year’s levy request is higher because of a number of factors, including inflation, which has caused the district to pay more for existing services and supplies. In addition, he said labor costs have increased drastically nationwide along with supply chain shortages.

“Personnel costs account for 77% of the district’s operating budget and because of that our budget is extremely sensitive to increases in labor costs that we have seen nationwide,” Attaway said. “And while mitigating the effects of high inflation can be difficult enough, supply chain shortages have further compounded the issues. The economic laws of supply and demand have driven certain expenses that the school district must incur, like food costs, even higher than inflation.”

Attaway said the district will continue to look at ways to reduce costs.

“For example, when the board approved a new banking institution, that saved the district more than $75,000 a year in fees,” he said.

In addition, he said the board could look at more creative solutions, such as keeping old buses for parts to reduce the cost of future repairs.