Byron School District approves 6.07% levy for 2025
Byron School Board members approved a revised budget for 2025 Monday night with a 6.07% tax levy, following the annual Truth-in-Taxation presentation. The board also heard a presentation from financial consultant SmithSchafer on the final results of the 2024 audit.
In addition, the board formally accepted the resignation of Superintendent Dr. Mike Neubeck, effective at the end of the current school year.
The revised budget is $9,215,144.26. The increase, Neubeck pointed out, will not necessarily mean that individual property owners will be paying more for the school portion of their taxes because of the increased valuation of homes in the district. Some residents, he said, may see their school taxes decrease.
The district has been struggling in recent months over district finances since it was revealed last spring that the district would be about $2 million short. In response the district made $1.6 million in budget cuts to the current budget. To get the district’s fund balance to an acceptable level, the district will need to cut an additional $1.6 million from next year’s budget.
A $1.9 million operating levy referendum of $800 per pupil failed in November, and it is likely that another referendum will be on the November 2025 ballot. The board also last month approved borrowing up to $3.5 million dollars to meet cash flow obligations including a debt-service payment in January.
During the Truth-in-Taxation presentation, Interim Finance Director Julie Cink said several factors contributed to the levy change. The adjusted net tax capacity increased 11.4% in the past year and the referendum Market value saw a 12.2% increase. While the tax capacity increase will help keep the individual tax amount down, a decrease in the number of students enrolled in the district will reduce the amount of state aid.
The district currently has 11 fewer pupil units than last year. Since 2023 the home-schooled population has doubled and the open-enrollment numbers out of the district have tripled.
The final audit results basically agreed with the numbers presented during the Tax-in-Taxation presentation.
The audit shows that for the General Fund, expenditures exceeded revenues and other financing sources by $1,753,497, decreasing the total General Fund balance to $123,907, a figure that puts the balance at less than 1% of the budget well below the minimum fund balance of 8%.
Other fund balances, the audit report showed, were in good shape. The Food Service Fund revenues exceeded expenditures by $92,338 increasing the balance to $270,733. Community Service Fund revenues exceeded expenditures by $29,859, bringing the fund balance to $213,293 and the Building Construction Fund expenditures exceeded revenues by $17,107,194 as the construction project continued spending down the 2022A and 2022B bond proceeds.
Next step for the district is to determine what reductions will need to be made in next year’s budget. School administrators will be putting together a plan for proposed reductions that will be presented to the school board in either late January or February. District officials have indicated they wish to decide on those reductions in March.
Those decisions will be made by a new school board as three members of the current board, Duane Quam, Heather Holmes and Matt Prigge have terms ending at the end of 2024 and attended their last meeting as board members Monday night.
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