December 5, 2022
Manhattan School District 114 Families & Community,
I want to take a moment to thank you once more for your support leading up to the referendum vote this past summer and for supporting our schools. During the time leading up to the vote on the referendum, I promised our community that the new school would be built without increasing the tax rate which is currently $4.2552 and has been for several years. I want to assure you that I and the Manhattan School District 114 Board of Education stand by that pledge.
December is the month that all public taxing bodies must file their levy for the next fiscal year and must also publish a “Truth in Taxation” prior to the tax levy hearing. For the “Truth in Taxation” the public taxing body must include all taxes that can be levied for debt service (all bond & interest payments). It is required by law that a notice includes the full amount of taxes that can be levied. In this case, it would amount to a 26% increase in the overall levy from the previous year. However, the Manhattan School District 114 Board of Education has historically (every year I have been Superintendent) held a special meeting in March once the Will County Clerk’s Office issues the final tax levy for each taxing body, to abate whatever portion of the bond & interest levy is necessary to maintain the tax rate. Any increase in revenue for the district comes from new home construction, new businesses, or increased assessed values of existing properties, and not an increase in the tax rate.
To summarize, the following is what must occur each year;
Publish Truth in Taxation Notice in December prior to the Tax Levy Hearing. A copy of this can be found in the newspaper or by clicking here.
Hold the Public Hearing on Tax Levy in December at the regular board meeting. Board meetings are held on the second Wednesday of each month.
File the Tax Levy Request with the Will County Clerk prior to end of December.
Hold Special Board Meeting in March to abate whatever of the portion bond & interest levy is necessary to maintain a tax rate of $4.2552
I hope this clarifies the tax levy process for you. If you have questions, please feel free to reach out to me.
Sincerely,
Mr. Rusty Ragon
Superintendent