The Examiner U-46 News Feed

Public mute on proposed U-46 property tax levy

By Seth Hancock
  A public hearing was held on the proposed School District U-46 property tax levy, the district seeking the maximum allowed under the law, at the Board of Education meeting on Monday, Nov. 20. No public comments were made.
  The proposal shows the corporate and special purpose levy rising 8 percent from the 2022 extension of $315.8 million to $341 million and debt service from $32.1 million last year to $32.8 million making the total ask $373.8 million.
  The estimated tax rate is 5.1632 percent, and homeowners in DuPage and Kane counties will see a sharp rise in their U-46 portion of the tax bill but Cook County will drop, based on presented estimates.
  “Cook County’s different,” said Frank Williams, assistant superintendent of finance. “Kane and DuPage, they both go off of one-third of your property market value. Cook County goes off of 10 percent.”
  The district used homes valued at $200,000 in tax year 2020 with their accompanied rise in valuation based on estimates from the county assessors’ offices.
  That home in Kane County would pay $4,535 in tax year 2023, a 16.2 percent increase or $633 from $3,902 in tax year 2022 and DuPage County homeowners would pay $4,077, an 11.6 percent increase or $422 from $3,655. The Cook County home would pay $3,265, down 6 percent or $207 from $3,472.
  The $341 million corporate and special purpose levy is a defensive levy with the district expecting $339 million, a 7.3 percent increase. The defensive levy is “to insure receipt of all property tax dollars to which the District is entitled,” the determination of tax levy presented on Nov. 6 stated.
  “In order to have the maximum tax extensions, levy amounts must be high enough to reach the maximum amounts to be calculated in accordance with the ‘Tax Cap’ legislation. Since the equalized assessed valuation (EAV) of property and new construction numbers are unknown, it is a common practice to establish a defensive levy,” the proposal stated.
  A resolution and certificate of tax levy will be voted on at the upcoming Dec. 4 board of education meeting.