Grayslake District 46 seeks more revenue from taxpayers

Grayslake Elementary District 46 plans to seek the maximum allowable amount of taxes from property owners next year.

Board members voted 4-3 at a meeting Wednesday night in favor of seeking nearly $32 million from property owners through a tax levy in 2012 to fund operations, up about $1.4 million from this year.

No residents spoke or asked questions at a taxation hearing before the board took action later in the evening, unlike last year when 70 spectators showed up to demonstrate concern.

District 46 Chief School Business Official Anna Kasprzyk said the plan is to boost next year’s levy by 4.64 percent. Most public bodies by state law are limited in how much they can increase taxes on existing properties to 5 percent, or the rate of inflation determined by the Consumer Price Index, whichever is lower. The CPI factor this year is 1.5 percent.

Kasprzyk said District 46 needs to pursue the maximum amount it can receive from current property owners, new construction and expiring special taxing zones that are expected to start producing revenue.

She said District 46 has financial challenges ahead, such as contract negotiations with two employee unions and the loss of state funding for a projected $2 million in student transportation expenses.

“We are very concerned about tax rates that are going up in this district,” Kasprzyk said at Wednesday’s meeting, “and we’re doing everything to not increase the tax rates, but unfortunately, with the reduced revenue and the expenditures going up, we are forced to levy to the maximum.”

Officials at many taxing bodies decide to levy on the high side because final reports on the value of land in their districts are not available at the time the levy is set. What District 46 taxpayers will owe won’t be officially known until next year.

Board President Ray Millington and members Keith Surroz, Karen Weinert and Susan Facklam voted in favor of the higher tax levy. Michael Carbone, Kip Evans and Shannon Smigielski voted against the levy without comment.

At a previous meeting to discuss the effort to seek more from District 46’s taxpayers, Carbone grilled Kasprzyk and questioned why some officials contend finances are a problem if the levy has gone from $21 million six years ago to beyond $30 million.

“I have a problem with this if my taxes are going up because of salary increases across the board,” Carbone said.