Fairfield schools to hold public hearing on tax increase

FAIRFIELD – The Fairfield Community School District invites the public to attend a hearing on a proposed property tax increase at 6:30 p.m. Monday, March 24 at the A.C.T. Center.

Fairfield residents currently pay about $12.12 per $1,000 of taxable valuation in property taxes to the school district, and that figure would increase to about $12.77 per $1,000 of taxable valuation if the district’s proposed levy is approved. However, calculating the increase is not so straightforward since residents’ property values are also rising. In fact, the state is requiring the school district to assume that property values will rise 10 percent when calculating its budget.

According to a spreadsheet available on the district’s website, a resident who owns a $100,000 home is paying $562 in annual property taxes to the school. After accounting for both the new levy and new property values, that resident would pay $666 next fiscal year, an increase of 18.5 percent.

A press release from the district, prepared by Ella Stockwell of the Donovan Group, sought to put the levy increase in context, noting that Fairfield’s levy is the second-lowest among the 10 schools in Iowa with comparable enrollment, and the second-lowest tax levy among the six schools in the Southeast Conference.

“The board remains sensitive to the needs of taxpayers and has worked to keep the rate as low as possible,” stated the news release. “However, the board believes raising the rate is necessary to address aging facilities that require ongoing maintenance and rising insurance costs, while ensuring the district has enough cash flow to cover expenses for things like a special education deficit.”

Superintendent Zach Wigle said that about 220 students, 14 percent of the district’s enrollment, are in special education. He said that having a deficit in the special ed fund is not unusual, and in fact he said most districts have this problem.

“Once you exhaust your special ed dollars, you use general fund dollars to offset those costs,” he said.

Fairfield’s Chief Financial Officer Evan Marten said part of the increase in the levy comes from the increase in the Physical Plant and Equipment Levy voters passed in March 2024 when they approved an increase from $0.67 per $1,000 taxable valuation to $1.37. He added that the district’s facility and insurance expenses continue to rise, too.

Even while Fairfield’s expenses are rising, the district is making cuts to improve its financial position and steer clear of large deficits. Earlier this year, the board approved about $900,000 in cuts, and about $350,000 of that came from a change to insurance. The rest came from reducing class sizes and not filling positions vacated from retirements or staff moving.

Marten said the district will move to having only four sections in kindergarten, first, fourth and fifth grades, while second and third grades will continue to have five sections. Marten said the district was able to trim 8.6 positions, such as having one fewer person in both the technology and accounting departments, and one fewer secretary at Pence Elementary.

To view the proposed property tax levy, visit the district’s website at fairfieldsfuture.org, and click on the orange button that says “Tax Levy Public Hearing Info.”

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Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com