MCCSC Superintendent Jeff Hauswald at a community forum Wednesday.
(Lucas Gonzalez, WFIU/WTIU News)
Members of the public got the chance to hear more and ask questions about the Monroe County Community School Corporation’s plans for a tax referendum.
More than a dozen people attended MCCSC’s Wednesday community forum, which came a day after the school board voted to notify the county auditor of a proposed referendum to raise the property tax rate.
Superintendent Jeff Hauswald led the meeting, which lasted a little more than an hour. He spent the first half laying out the district’s case for requesting another tax referendum less than a year after the last one was passed.
MCCSC said this latest referendum, which it hopes to get on the Nov. 7 ballot, would seek to expand early childhood education and eliminate costs to families.
“We have 50 years of data that prove conclusively that early childhood is an investment, yet we’re not making it in Indiana,” Hauswald said. “We know it’s the right thing to do, so can we do it locally? Well, we’re going to ask our taxpayers that.”
A crowd of people at the MCCSC community forum Wednesday. (Lucas Gonzalez, WFIU/WTIU News)
Hauswald said MCCSC is faced with several challenges due to funding inequities imposed by the state, such as a shortage of early childhood opportunities, financial barriers to education, and kids not being ready for K-12 education.
If the referendum passes, the increased tax rate would not exceed 8.5 cents per $100 of assessed property value. That translates to a roughly $50 annual increase for a homeowner with property valued at $250,000, according to MCCSC.
The district determined an 8.5 cent tax hike is appropriate after asking community members how much more they would be willing to invest in free and/or cost-reduced pre-K, and fees for instructional materials, student technology, testing and technical education, according to Hauswald.
One reason MCCSC wants this referendum is because the state legislature passed HB 1499, which caps the rate of school tax growth. It will reduce the tax rate of its referendum passed in 2022 by no more than 3 percent.
Hauswald said that means the district’s rate from the 2022 referendum is expected to drop by 1.5 to 2 cents, giving it less additional revenue. MCCSC has not received the first proceeds of that property tax increase.
With that in consideration, Hauswald said the proposed referendum would put the tax rate increase somewhere between 3 to 4 cents.
“We are asking for a small increase, but most of this is a tax shift — from things to people and programs,” he said.
Some in attendance Wednesday came to learn more about the district’s plans while others came to express their support for or skepticism toward the proposed referendum.
David Sabbagh, a former MCCSC board member, said he supports everything the district wants to accomplish through a new referendum but believes it comes too soon after the last one.
“Unfortunately, we have this thing called city government that also taxes us — and my property tax went way up this year because (of) reassessment,” Sabbagh said. “I would hope that we could put it off for a year to give the taxpayers a chance to catch their breath.”
But Hauswald said the tax rate for MCCSC households is lower than the state average and that of comparably sized school districts. MCCSC’s tax rates fall in the bottom 10 percent of all districts across Indiana, according to Hauswald.
“You can say, ‘We’ll just wait a year’ — but if you have a 3-year-old right now, if you’re trying to get back to the workforce and your child is at home, I would argue that they’ll say, ‘But why me? Why do we have to wait a year? Because we know that our school district has low tax rates,’” Hauswald said.
Maqubè Reese also attended the forum. Reese is the president of the Monroe County NAACP and is active in various other local organizations but attended the meeting in her individual capacity.
Reese asked Hauswald the following question: “How is your administration preparing for the influx of diversity due to free education for pre-K to third grade level, given the history of harm done to Black, brown and people of color, and the LGBTQ+ community?”
In responding, Hauswald said the district hopes to create a more diverse student body by providing additional early childhood opportunities.
He also pointed to last year’s referendum, which increased teacher salaries. He said that’s helping to attract more talent and diversify staff, something MCCSC prioritizes.
Reese said the referendum makes sense but she’s still pondering it.
“We have to be more proactive than reactive,” Reese said. “How do you retain this top talent in our community and make sure they feel like they belong here, and that it’s not a fake utopia? We really have to work hard if we want to retain all of this movement.”
Reese also said she wants to know how the district plans to protect marginalized students and measure students’ success.
Hauswald said he’s confident the referendum will ultimately pass.
“We know that this is what our families need; they told us,” Hauswald said. “I know this community will support it, because it’s the right thing to do.”
