INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The Indian River County School Board gave its tentative approval for the proposed property tax rate and nearly $268 million budget during a special hearing Tuesday evening that drew no public input.
The property tax rate – or millage – is a slight increase over that levied last year, 8.313 compared to 8.244, but due to the continued decline of property values, most property owners can still expect to see the amount of money they send to the School District go down.
The county Property Appraiser has estimated property values will decrease approximately 3.77 percent. For a homeowner with a $200,000 home last year – that same home would then be worth $192,460, according to Assistant Superintendent of Finance Carter Morrison.
That same homeowner, with a $25,000 homestead exemption, would likely pay $1,392 this year. Last year, the homeowner would have paid about $1,443 – a difference of about $51 or 3.5 percent.
“It all depends on their assessment that is made by the property appraiser,” Morrison told the School Board.
The School Board voted 4-0 to approve the 8.313 millage rate, which will go into effect for the 2012-13 fiscal year. School Board member Karen Disney-Brombach was absent from the hearing.
The board also voted unanimously to approve the nearly $268 million budget, which is $40 million less than the budget approved for the current fiscal year.
Much of the cut stems from capital projects the School District no longer deemed necessary – such as building a new campus for Osceola Magnet Elementary School. Instead, the school is being relocated to the former Thompson Lifelong Learning Center.
Schools Superintendent Dr. Fran Adams told the board that, with its approval, she would notify the Property Appraiser of the proposed millage rate and would proceed with the budget. A final hearing will be held on Sept. 11 to finalize both items.
