| Homeowner tax rate remains unchanged for fifth year in a row |
| Wednesday, September 26, 2018 |
The Pattonville Board of Education on Sept. 25 approved tax rates for the 2018-2019 school year which keep the rate for residential properties unchanged from the previous four years. Maintaining the same rate for five years is in step with the district's promise to voters who approved Proposition P in 2013 to limit the residential tax rate increase to 35 cents for as many years as possible.
The passage of Proposition P enabled Pattonville to approve balanced budgets for the last five years and prevented the need to cut $10 million in spending after already cutting $8 million between 2007 and 2013. Proposition P was an overall tax rate increase of $0.9972 designed to maintain and protect Pattonville's current instructional programs and staffing levels. Pattonville is voluntarily limiting the increase to 35 cents for homeowners for as many years as possible in order to reduce the burden on residents.
The newly approved tax rates include two other voluntary reductions, which reduced the overall tax rate for homeowners by nearly $1 from what it could have been (see chart below for details):
Approximately 86 percent of Pattonville's revenue comes from local sources, which include taxes paid on property in the district. These taxes are based on the assessed value of the property, as determined by the St. Louis County assessor's office. The value of property in Pattonville remained flat in 2017.
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