A second referendum question will be added to the ballot on the Nov. 5 general election.
The Vigo County Election Board Monday approved adding a Vigo County School Corp. request for additional operating funding.
It will follow a previously approved question for a proposed casino.
The casino question will read: “Shall inland casino gambling be permitted in Vigo County?”
The schools question will read:
“For the eight (8) calendar years immediately following the holding of the referendum, shall Vigo County School Corporation impose a property tax rate that does not exceed sixteen and twenty-two hundredths cents ($0.1622) on each one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed valuation and that is in addition to all other property taxes imposed by the school corporation for the purpose of funding safe transportation of students, to maintain safe and secure schools, reduce class sizes and attract and retain teachers and staff for our children?”
The school corporation has made several presentations outlining the district’s financial challenges.
The cash balance is declining significantly, and Superintendent Rob Haworth is proposing a combination of $4 million in budget cuts and an operating levy referendum of $7 million.
The owner of a Vigo County home with a median value of $90,700 would pay $43.32 more per year, or $3.60 per month, if the referendum passes, according to consultant Todd Samuelson of Baker Tilly Municipal Investors. Taxes on farmland would increase by $2.53 per acre while the owner of a $100,000 commercial building, including an apartment house, would pay an additional $162.
Property taxes are based on net assessed value after deductions. Owner-occupied homes are eligible for homestead deductions of varying amounts.
The taxable value of a $90,700 owner-occupied home, Vigo County’s median home value, is about one-third of market value, according to a online tax calculator provided by the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance. Deductions are also available for properties with mortgages, senior citizens and disabled veterans.
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