EM school board approves approximately $2.8 million tax levy
By LeAnn R. Ralph
ELK MOUND — The Elk Mound Board of Education has approved a tax levy for the 2013-2014 budget of approximately $2.8 million.
School boards generally approve exact numbers for the tax levy, but at the time of the Elk Mound school board meeting on October 21, exact numbers were not available from the state because the state legislature and the governor had approved an additional $100 million in school aids the week before.
If the additional school aids are approved by the state, Elk Mound will receive an additional $30,000, said Dr. Ron Walsh, superintendent.
If the additional state aid of $30,000 comes through, the mill rate in the Elk Mound school district would decrease by about eight tenths of a percent, from $9.90 per $1,000 of property value to $9.82 per $1,000 of property value, or would reduce the levy by about $9 on $100,000 of property value, Dr. Walsh said.
The anticipated property tax, at the time of the school district’s annual meeting in August, was $2.82 million.
The total property tax levy in 2012-2013 was $2.28 million, compared to $2.64 million in 2011-2012; $2.79 million in 2010-2011; and $2.74 million in 2009-2010.
The highest mill rate in the Elk Mound School District in the last seven years was $10.30 per $1,000 of property value in 2012-2013.
The lowest mill rate was $8.79 per $1,000 of property value in 2008-2009.
Equalized value in the Elk Mound school district for this year represents a 1.4 percent increase over last year.
This year’s equalized value is $283.5 million, compared to last year’s equalized value of $279.6 million.
This year, the Town of Elk Mound has 35.85 percent of the equalized property value in the school district, compared to 11.33 percent of the equalized value for the Village of Elk Mound, and 27.73 percent of the equalized value for the Town of Spring Brook. The Town of Union has 3.69 percent of the equalized value.
The Towns of Howard, Wheaton and Colfax all have less than one percent of the equalized value in the Elk Mound school district.
In the three-year rolling average, enrollment in Elk Mound has increased by seven students, Dr. Walsh said.
Open enrollment also has increased, with 118 students open enrolling into the district and 55 open enrolling out of the district, for a net gain in open enrollment of 63, he said.
The Elk Mound Board of Education did not approve an exact number, but instead, unanimously approved a motion for a tax levy “in an amount equaling the maximum revenue limit minus general state aid.”
Other business
In other business, the Elk Mound Board of Education:
• Recognized Dennis Meyer, president, CEO and part-owner of Independence State Bank, with a Notable Education Contribution award. Independence State Bank provides scholarships to the school district, hires students to work at the bank, and sends employees to the high school for personal finance or consumer economics classes.
• Approved the budget variance report that amounted to a $528 difference in the actual budget as compared to the budget that was presented at the school district’s annual meeting in August.
• Accepted the resignation of Tim Lambele as the middle school football coach.
• Accepted the resignation of Caron Hanson-Shepherd as the middle school volleyball coach.
Following a closed session, the Elk Mound Board of Education:
• Approved hiring Eric Knutson as a full-time elementary school teacher to fill a newly-created position at Mound View Elementary.
• Approved hiring Jon Chisholm as the middle school football coach.
• Approved hiring Deeann Thompson as the middle school volleyball coach.
