Wheeling Dist. 21 considering 1.4 percent hike in property tax levy

Wheeling Township Elementary District 21 is expecting a 1.4 percent increase in next year's property tax levy, which if approved by the school board Thursday would mean hike of about $31 in annual property taxes for the owner of a $300,000 home.

The 1.4 percent increase would bring the total levy to about $83 million, up from last year's $81 million.

Assistant Superintendent for Finance Mary Werling said the levy increase is needed to pay for negotiated increases in salaries and benefits for employees.

"There are also certain contracts with vendors that have cost increases," she said.

While the expected increase is under 2 percent, the district's levy proposal asks for a 15.4 percent increase, or a total levy amount of $95.6 million. Werling said the district must ask for that amount to capture the benefits of any increase in property values, but officials don't expect that large of an increase. The 1.4 percent levy increase assumes property values stay the same as they were for the 2014 tax year.

"In two of the past five years, (property values) have dropped by 15 percent," Werling said.

The board of education will host a public hearing and vote on the levy proposal when it meets at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, at the Gill Administration Center, 999 W. Dundee Road.