Burrell School District raises taxes with approval of $36.1 million budget

Property owners in Burrell School District will see an almost 4% increase in their real estate taxes next year.

Next year’s budget totals just under $36.2 million, a 4.1% increase from this past school year, said Jennifer Callahan, the district’s business manager.

The budget raises the millage rate from 107 to 111 — a 3.7% increase.

The owner of a home with a median assessed value of $23,000 will see a tax increase of $92 for the year, or $7.67 more per month, Callahan said.

The median assessment real estate tax for 2023-24 is $2,553. The current real estate tax is $2,461. Under the Homestead Exclusion Act, it is $2,339.

The approved budget leaves a deficit of $47,015, Callahan said, which will be offset by dipping into the district’s fund balance.

Callahan said there is no growth in overall district real estate assessment value over the prior year, and several large commercial properties’ tax appeals resulted in decreased assessed values. The decrease in real estate tax revenue amounted to more than $600,000, equaling about 4 mills of taxes.

Major factors in the budget, she said, are payroll and wage increases. Overall increases are $493,304, up 3.4% from the current year. The budget includes a new special education teacher and a new speech language pathologist.

Special Education Services and Student Placement Tuition saw an overall increase of $330,457, which is up 23.2% from the current year.

Health insurance benefits and student transportation were other factors, Callahan said, with health insurance increasing 11%, or $288,580, and student transportation increasing 7.4%, or $125,645.

The school board passed the budget at its meeting Tuesday.