Duluth Public School District proposes 6.9% levy increase for taxes payable 2026

Duluth Public School District officials presented a proposed 6.9% increase to the district levy for taxes payable in 2026 at a Dec. 16 Truth in Taxation hearing. Simone Zunich, executive director of finance and business services, told attendees the levy is calculated in 2025 and collected in 2026, with revenue applied to the 2026–27 school year.

Zunich laid out how levy revenue would be allocated under the proposal: roughly 40.6% of the levy would fund district regular and special education instructional programs and associated services, about 1.5% would support the Community Education Fund (including early childhood and after-school programming), and approximately 57.9% would go to debt-service repayment. She also described the district’s broader revenue mix: state aid represents the largest share (about 62.26%), federal funds roughly 6.93%, and the local levy about 23.28% of the revenue pie presented on the slides.

“This is our annual truth in taxation meeting,” Zunich said in opening remarks. She emphasized…