The OASD has continued to reduce its mill rate over the past decade. At $8.25, the 2023 mill rate remains below the rate in 2010. The mill rate is the amount of tax payable per $1,000 of equalized property value. Mill Rate = Tax Levy / (Equalized Property Value/$1000).
There are 16 taxing municipalities within the school district's boundaries. The district's mill rate for each taxing municipality might vary slightly depending on the change in the municipalities property values compared with the district's overall equalized value growth and how much of the district's overall levy is thereby allocated to the municipality.
The District’s levy increased by 10% from $58.9M to $65M. The increase was not related to the District’s operational levy, but rather it resulted from additional debt service levy to be used for early repayment of existing debt. The 14% increase in equalized property values, compared with the 3% increase initially forecasted, provided an opportunity for long-range strategic debt planning. Early debt repayment directly benefits taxpayers with lower mill rates by avoiding interest expense and reducing future debt service levies for existing debt.
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