District 87 a step closer to borrowing to offset pandemic-related losses

Posted on May 14, 2020
District 87
The board is expected to take final action on the borrowing plan at its August 12 meeting. (WJBC file photo)

 

By HOI ABC

BLOOMINGTON – The District 87 School Board is a step closer to approving a borrowing plan with the potential of raising property taxes.

The board voted unanimously Wednesday night to schedule a public hearing June 24 on a plan to sell $15 million in working cash bonds, hoping investors buy those bonds to offset revenue declines tied to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to our news partner HOI ABC.

The plan gives the Bloomington district flexibility to sell up to $17 million in bonds if interest rates are so low that additional borrowing would not raise the tax rate any further, said Superintendent Barry Reilly.

Assuming there’s no change in taxable land values, Reilly predicted the tax rate would rise one to three cents, which equates to an increase next year of between $5.83 to $17.50 for the owner of a $175,000 home.

The district’s current tax rate is $5.15 per $100 of assessed valuation.

The board is expected to take final action on the borrowing plan at its August 12 meeting.

WJBC News can be reached at [email protected]

Blogs

Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all

By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year.  It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …

Is federal mobilization the answer?

By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city.   Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…

In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans

By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…

Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life

Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University.   We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk.  Going to work every day for some people means…