Board approves tying employee mileage reimbursement to current IRS rate

The Bettendorf Community School District Board voted on Sept. 25 to tie the district’s mileage reimbursement for staff to the Internal Revenue Service standard mileage rate rather than a fixed cents-per-mile figure. Board members approved the amended motion by roll call, the board secretary reported, with the motion carrying 6-0-1.

Board discussion noted that contract language requires reimbursement at the “state level” in some places and that historically the state and IRS rates have differed; staff said the IRS and state rates are currently aligned. The board’s amendment changes the district’s policy practice from a specific cents-per-mile figure to “the current IRS reimbursement rate,” so the district will automatically track changes if the federal rate is updated.

The board’s action was presented as a corrective step to align district payments with the prevailing rate and to reduce the need for repeated board action when the standard mileage figure changes. The board did not identify an immediate budgetary impact beyond periodic reimbursement adjustments tied to the IRS rate.

The motion to amend and approve the mileage reimbursement at the current IRS standard rate passed on a roll call; board members recorded as voting “yes” during the roll call included Director McGivern, Director Smithson and Director Smith Pace, and Director Castro. The final tally announced was 6 yes, 0 no, 1 absent.