Duluth School Board Approves Tax Increase to Pay Debt
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DULUTH - The Duluth School Board voted to increase property taxes for the second year in a row Tuesday.
For an average household in Duluth, it will cost $61.55 a year which evens out to about $5 a month.
The $61 includes the extra amount approved by voters in November and the increase approved by the board Tuesday night.
The non-voter approved increase in taxes is because the schools are not making money from the schools they closed and planned to sell with the Red Plan.
If they do sell a vacant school, the money would go into the general fund which only has about $2 million in it.
The school board isn't counting on selling the schools anytime soon, so they have decided to increase taxes to help out.
“It has been a major impact on our budget,” explained school board member, Art Johnston. “That's why we've had repeated deficits time after time after time.”
The vote passed 6-1 with Johnston’s disapproval.
The money collected by the tax increase approved Tuesday will go directly to pay for the debt redemption fund, also known as the lack of property sales.
The school board assures the public the money approved by voters in the referendum will be set aside to address class size, student achievement and update curriculum, not to pay the debt.