Muscatine CSD finance staff previews FY26 budget; board to hold taxpayer hearings March 24 and April 14

District finance staff presented a preliminary certified budget and timeline for fiscal 2026, told the Muscatine Community School District Board of Directors the district must file its maximum property-tax levy by March 5 and said the board will hold the required taxpayer hearings March 24 and April 14.

“Refer to it tonight or whenever you want to. It’s also on our district website under the finance department,” said Tom, a district staff member leading the presentation, describing a handout that summarizes revenue sources, legal uses of each fund and finance terminology.

Tom outlined the timeline for certifying the budget and emphasized that the district must set levies before the state finalizes supplemental state aid (SSA). He noted the district uses a conservative SSA projection (2% in the presentation) and that uncertainty in SSA and other state-level changes will affect the district’s tax rate and spending authority. Tom said the district projects a general-fund budget of roughly $62 million for FY26 and that the district needs to identify about $1.5 million in general-fund expenditure reductions for next year.

Key numbers and proposals discussed in the presentation:

- The agenda presentation showed a proposed total property-tax rate of $13.92 per $1,000 of taxable valuation for the coming year (projection subject to change depending on SSA and other state actions). - The district proposed a cash-reserve levy of $1,500,000 and a management-fund levy of $2,500,000 in its preliminary levy plan. - The presentation recommended increasing the instructional‑support income surtax from 1% to 2% to reduce the property-tax portion of the instructional-support levy; the income surtax portion is credited to the general fund and lowers the amount of property tax required for the same levy authority.

Tom reviewed enrollment trends, explaining that “budget enrollment” (resident students counted for levy purposes) has declined from about 5,344 in 2013 to about 4,315 in 2024, and that declining enrollment reduces state funding and contributes to the district’s budget pressures. He said the district’s solvency ratio and unspent spending authority are important cash and legal indicators; the district currently carries several months of management-fund reserves and is proposing levy adjustments to maintain cash flow for up-front July expenditures such as insurance and early-retirement payments.

Board members asked about the composition of the levies, the effect of statewide property-tax relief proposals, and how federal funds arrive in district budgets; finance staff said federal program funds are routed through the Iowa Department of Education to local education agencies and that food-service claims use federal program channels. Staff also confirmed recent property-valuation changes and noted that county auditors will mail taxpayer notices after the March 5 submission.

The board scheduled the required public hearings and will bring a levy certification/resolution back for board action prior to filing with the county auditor.