Green Bay School Board expects lower property tax rate even if voters approve $92.6 million referendum to repair, update buildings
GREEN BAY — The Green Bay School District presented the 2022-23 budget totaling $296.3 million school at a school board meeting Monday night.
This is a decrease of about $1 million from the preliminary budget proposed in June due to a reduction in full-time employees and actual expenses for the last school year being less than expected.
"If you don't work in public education, those numbers are gonna be startling. They're huge," Board President Laura McCoy said. "This is what it costs to provide educational services for roughly 20,000 students, and these are the numbers that we must make peace with."
A combination of record inflation, declining enrollment and flat per-student state funding under the current biennium budget are squeezing the district's finances, according to Chief Financial Officer Angela Roble.
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An infusion of federal pandemic relief dollars, known as ESSER funds, is helping the district close its $12.5 million gap between expenditures and revenue this year.
In total, the district got $72.4 million in federal and state pandemic relief aid to offset the costs of the pandemic and its effects on student learning.
But that money must be spent by September 2024 — leaving the district with a predicted $36 million deficit unless state funding increases or the district makes deep cuts.
Breakdown of what's in the district's budget
As for the property tax rate residents will be paying schools, it could decrease to the lowest rate since 1984.
But how much it decreases depends on whether voters approve the district's proposed $92.6 million building maintenance and improvement referendum in November.
If voters pass the referendum, the tax rate will be $8 per $1,000 of fair market property value. For a home valued at $150,000, the tax would be about $1,200. Last year's rate was $9.03 per $1,000 fair market valuation.
If the referendum doesn't pass, the rate drops to $4.59 per $1,000 fair market valuation of property. The significant decrease would be because the district has paid off the debt from a 2017 referendum early and won't be paying off any debt.
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However, a failed ballot measure in November would require an increase in the rate in the following years because there would be no referendum funding to pay for what the district says are necessary school maintenance and improvements.
The overall tax levy, the amount the district raises through the property tax, is expected to increase by 1.37% over last year.
Teacher salaries will increase by 4.7%, the full inflationary increase allowed based on the state Department of Revenue's measure of inflation. Health insurance benefits will increase by 2.43%.
Private school voucher spending, which allows students to attend private schools using public school money, will cost the district $9.3 million.
The district has reduced staff by 105 full-time employees through attrition, cutting about $4 million in staffing costs from the budget. The district is working to right-size the staffing levels to better reflect the declining enrollment.
Because of increased student needs during the COVID-19 pandemic, the district hired about 100 additional employees.
District enrollment has declined again for the sixth year in row with 19,828 students, which decreases the amount of per-student funding the district gets from the state.
The final budget will be approved by the board on Oct. 24, but the budget will likely change after state funding numbers are finalized later in the month.
Board picks headhunting firm for next superintendent
The board is poised to launch its search for the district's next superintendent with Illinois-based BWP & Associates leading the recruitment efforts for about $44,750.
Interim Superintendent Vicki Bayer attended the meeting, her first since returning to work Oct. 3 after having a heart attack in September.
Board members McCoy, Dawn Smith, James Lyerly, Laura Laitinen-Warren and Nancy Welch voted in favor of BWP & Associates.
Members Andrew Becker and Bryan Milz voted against the firm, largely citing costs.
The three firms considered for the search were BWP & Associates, McPherson & Jacobson LLC, and Wisconsin Association of School Boards.
The majority of board members said their top choice was BWP & Associates due to the firm's commitment to recruiting diverse candidates and actively recruiting for the position.
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The board collectively eliminated McPherson & Jacobson LLC because it was not a top choice for any board members.
McCoy, Becker and Milz were in favor of the Wisconsin Association of School Boards because its costs are about $16,200 — $28,500 less than BWP & Associates.
"I do think cost is a factor unless I thought we were going to get much, much more from another firm, and I just don't think we'll get much, much more from another firm. We may get a little," Becker said.
The board did create a point-based rubric to evaluate firms, and McCoy said that WASB had gotten the highest score.
However, WASB doesn't actively recruit for candidates because it is a member organization for school boards across the state. It won't recruit superintendents from its own member districts.
Members Smith, Lyerly, Laitinen-Warren and Welch argued the increased cost is worth the investment given the importance of the search and the active recruitment BWP & Associates provides.
"Although considering there was a cost difference (between WASB and BWP & Associates), I think this is absolutely the most important thing we can do as a board," Laitinen-Warren said. "I was incredibly impressed by what BWP & Associates proposed to do."
Lyerly agreed with Laitinen-Warren saying when he looked at the costs of BWP & Associates, they weren't out of range.
"I discounted the difference in cost because of the importance of the decision," he said.
WASB is also Wisconsin-focused, which was a point of concern for some board members who wanted national recruitment of candidates.
"I don't know that somebody from rural Wisconsin is going to come in and do the job we need in the district," board member Laura Laitinen-Warren said.
The motion to pick WASB as the search firm failed to pass with only board members Becker, Milz and McCoy voting in favor.
Danielle DuClos is a Report for America corps member who covers K-12 education for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at dduclos@gannett.com. Follow on Twitter @danielle_duclos. You can directly support her work with a tax-deductible donation at GreenBayPressGazette.com/RFA or by check made out to The GroundTruth Project with subject line Report for America Green Bay Press Gazette Campaign. Address: The GroundTruth Project, Lockbox Services, 9450 SW Gemini Drive, PMB 46837, Beaverton, Oregon 97008-7105.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Green Bay Schools present $296 million budget, pick headhunting firm
