Senators review proposed overhaul of education finance: statewide tax, local supplements and recapture mechanics

Legislative counsel and fiscal staff on Wednesday outlined H.454's major financing changes: a single statewide education property tax to fund the foundation amount and a separate supplemental district spending tax that districts may approve locally, with formulas designed to equalize tax capacity across districts.

The proposal would set a statewide education tax rate (to be recommended in a December 1 letter) that covers the state's share of education funding. Districts that voters choose to fund above their Education Opportunity Payment (EOP) could do so by approving supplemental district spending (SDS) up to 10% of the district's EOP for the fiscal year. Under the bill the local SDS rate would be computed by dividing the district's per‑pupil SDS by a supplemental district spending yield tied to the revenue that a single district with the state's lowest taxing capacity could raise at a $1 per $100 equalized education property tax rate.

Why it matters: staff said the design intends to make locally raised dollars comparable across districts with widely different property wealth. By tying the SDS rate to the lowest taxing‑capacity district, wealthier districts would…