• 
• CLASS
• JOBS
• AUTO
• HOMES

City taxes higher than school taxes in Brodhead

Photo

BRODHEAD — The city portion of a Brodhead homeowner's tax bill is larger than the school's tax, which is highly unusual, a researcher with the Wisconsin Taxpayer Alliance said.

"On average, the city portion runs around 20 percent, while the school (portion) is 40 to 45 percent," said Dale Knapp, research director with the taxpayer alliance.

In Brodhead, the city portion was 40.4 percent of the bill on a $100,000 home last year, while the school tax was 32.3 percent, according to data from City Clerk Nancy Schoeller.

It's "very, very unusual" to see the municipal portion of the tax bill larger than the school portion, Knapp said.

The anomaly is possibly what makes the school district a "scapegoat" when it comes to tax increases, school board President Peggy Olsen said. Some Brodhead taxpayers faced with another tax increase if the school referendum is approved say their taxes are high enough already, she said.

"You have to wonder because schools are the only ones that do have to go to a referendum and ask for the taxpayers' permission," she said. "I think it gives them a sense of empowerment to say 'no' that they haven't had a chance to say up until now."

Districts residents will vote April 6 on a three-year, $1.76 million school referendum to maintain programs and staff.

Brodhead also has been hit hard by plant closures. The city of a little more than 3,000 residents has lost nearly 800 jobs at three major plants that closed or downsized in the last few years, according to information from the Green County Development Corp.

The city's tax rate is the highest of all municipalities in Green County, while the school district's tax rate is the lowest of all county school districts. Over the last five years, school taxes have increased 12.9 percent; city taxes went up 20.5 percent, and county taxes increased 26.9 percent.

Mayor Doug Pinnow said he doesn't know why Brodhead's taxes are relatively high. He deferred several questions on the tax bill to the city clerk.

"The best I know, we can only raise our budget so much each time," he said. "We're at bare bones, like the school is at bare bones."

He said the city has a handful of tax increment financing districts open, so new developments in the districts don't add to the taxing entities until the TIFs close. The city has been trying to do major street construction, but funding limits it to only a block at a time, he said.

"We're just really trying to keep up and make ends meet," he said.

The relatively low school tax is part of what throws off the numbers, Schoeller said.

The district's low tax rate "would account for them being less than the city because they have maintained the lowest tax rate of school districts," she said. "Other districts have gone to referendum and have their rates quite a bit higher."

Among the bigger projects that have affected taxes in the last 10 to 20 years have been a new city hall, fire department, library and upgraded police department, she said. The city also pays for full-time dispatching for emergency services, which other communities might not do, she said.

Municipal taxes are typically lower than school taxes because of the way each has been funded, Knapp said. Municipalities have fee revenues and various state aids for roads that help with their budgets, he said, while schools are funded primarily with property taxes and state aid.

Olsen and Superintendent Chuck Deery said the city hasn't done the school district any favors in terms of taxes. Both said the city projects have made the city a nice place to live, but the school district suffers from some of the backlash from taxpayers.

"They built and built and built and have done all these improvements to the city, and none of them had to be presented to the community," Deery said.