Taxpayers residing in the Fort Wayne Community Schools district will see a 3.2 percent increase in their 2013 property tax bills if the school board approves the proposed budget.
The property tax increase means the owner of a $100,000 home would pay about $33 more next year.
The 3.2 percent increase in property taxes is part of a total 5.1 percent increase, or $13.6 million, to the district’s budget from 2012. The increase is the result of changes at the local and state level, as well as an increase for the district’s voter-approved $119 million building referendum.
The advertised 2013 budget presented Monday night totals about $288 million, but the district is expecting to receive about $279 million after property tax cap losses and decreases in assessed value.
To fund the difference between the budget increase and property tax increase, or about $6.1 million, the district will use general fund cash reserves. The general fund is the only fund not supported by local property taxes but is instead supported by the state in the form of per-student tuition payments.
The cash balance for the district can be used only for general fund expenditures and cannot be used in other funds such as the capital projects fund. The cash is available through cuts the district has made over the years, said Kathy Friend, FWCS chief financial officer.
Friend presented the budget to the district board. A public hearing on the budget will be Oct. 8, with a board vote scheduled for Oct. 22.
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The proposed 3.2 percent property tax increase is separate from Mayor Tom Henry’s proposed 5.7 percent property tax hike in Fort Wayne’s city budget, which for the average taxpayer would equal an increase of about $2 a month.
