School spending up, but area growth keeps tax rate stable

Spending will go up but the tax rate will come down as a result of a jump in equalized value of property in the Medford Area Public School District.

At Monday’s annual meeting, finance director Audra Brooks walked residents through school funding and how the local tax rate is determined.

The budget, as presented, calls for total spending this year of $41,629,464 across all funds. This is up about $7.14% compared to last year. This includes not only instructional spending, but repayment of debt and the cost to operate district programs including the Rural Virtual Academy.

State aids, income from open enrollment and other revenue sources such as grants reduce the amount of the budget that goes to the local tax levy. The levy for the 2025-2026 school year is $9,244,379, which is a 7.97% increase from last year’s levy.

When asked by a resident at the meeting, Brooks said the amount does include the additional $325 per pupil in spending allowed by Gov. Tony Ever’s line item veto in the past biennial budget. Brooks said the legislature in this year’s budget chose not to add any general school aids, meaning the increase would go onto local property taxes.

Brooks explained that prior to 2011, the per pupil spending generally kept pace with inflation, but that with changes made that year with Act 10, it has continued to lag behind. The measure allows the district to work to catch up to where per pupil spending should be when adjusted for inflation.

While the district levy increases, so too did the district’s equalized value which saw a jump of about 8.56%. As a result the projected tax rate will be $5.96 per $1,000 of equalized value, a drop of 3 cents per $1,000 over last year.

What this works out to is that the owner of a $200,000 home will pay $1,192 in the school portion of their property tax this winter. However, with revaluations, especially in the city of Medford, impacting home values for tax purposes the final impact will vary.

Electors approved the budget as presented and approved setting the preliminary tax levy with it to be finalized by the school board at the October board meeting when all the state enrollment numbers are finalized.

In other annual meeting business, electors rejected a call to increase the per meeting pay of board members.

Under the board member compensation, the board president is currently paid $125 per meeting, the clerk is paid $120 per meeting and other board members are paid $100 per meeting. All members receive $60 per meeting for committee meetings.

Board member Don Everhard called for an increase in the board member pay, noting that there hasn’t been an increase in the past five years. He noted that every single staff member has gotten a raise in that time, and while no one is living off the wages received for being on the school board, he felt increasing it was the right thing to do.

Board member John Zuleger asked if it could be tied to a cost of living adjustment and go up each year. “I don’t think that is a bad thought process,” Everhard said, however, he said he did not think it could be done this year.

“None of us is doing this job for the paycheck,” he said.

Everhard proposed a new pay schedule of $150 per meeting for president $145 per meeting for clerk, $125 per meeting for other members and $80 per meeting for committees. Electors approved the increase on a raised hand vote.

During the annual meeting, all district residents in attendance who are over 18 years old can participate and make and vote on motions.

Electors approved the other routine business of the annual meeting including authorizing the lease and potential purchase of any property for school needs and the authority to lease out land that is not needed. There is nothing being planned at this time, but the authorizations are renewed on an annual basis if something were to come up before the next annual meeting.