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District 153 files a $17.6 million tax levy

Homewood School District 153 is filing a tax levy for $17.6 million.

The district’s 2015 tax levy was $16.6 million.

Chief School Business Official John Gibson said that reflects a 6.07 percent increase, but he knows that the district will not receive that much additional revenue.

The final tax rate is set by the Cook County Assessor’s Office after looking at multiple factors, including the equalized assessed valuation, in setting the district’s tax rate. Gibson said the district won’t get the final levy numbers on its Agency Rate Report from Cook County until June.

“Because of the uncertainty of what property values will be, we have to ask for more money. We are expecting a decline (from that 6 percent),” Gibson said.

Cook County tax collection is always a year behind, so this levy is for 2016 taxes to be paid on 2017 bills.

Gibson said there is one bright spot in a tight budget. The district expects to get an additional $600,000 this school year from the State of Illinois. Legislators agreed to give districts their full allocation of general state aid this year. The money was approved in the six-month temporary budget expiring Dec. 31.

In addition, the district expects to go into the market in January for the sale of half of its $9 million bond issue approved by residents in a spring 2016 referendum, he said. That money will be put to use starting with the 2017-18 school year, Gibson added.

 

 

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