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Rockwood staff present proposed 2025 tax rate, explain Proposition 3 transfer and collection uncertainty
Summary
District staff presented a proposed 2025 tax rate of 3.8816, described a reassessment-driven 10.3% increase in assessed valuation and the completion of Proposition 3 levy transfers to the capital fund; officials cautioned actual collections may fall short while county data is pending.
District finance staff presented the Rockwood School District’s annual tax-rate hearing, outlining reassessment impacts and the final year of a two-year Proposition 3 levy transfer.
Staff said this is a reassessment year and reported a combined St. Louis and Jefferson County assessed valuation near $6,000,000,000, a 10.3% increase from the prior year. New construction added about $31,000,000 to the tax roll while personal property assessment declined by approximately $13,800,000.
S5 summarized Proposition 3, approved by voters in November 2023, as a two-year levy transfer that moves a total of $0.54 (54¢) from the debt service levy into the capital projects fund; 36¢ moved in year one and the remaining 18¢ is being shifted this year. Staff said the transfer creates no net tax-rate increase tied to Proposition 3 because the changes are levy reassignments across funds.
Officials presented a proposed 2025 operating tax rate of 3.8816, a slight decline from last year’s 3.8826 and described in the presentation as the lowest rate shown in the district’s historical chart. The presenters noted a remaining debt service levy of 14¢ that staff say will be sufficient to service outstanding debt obligations estimated at about $72,000,000.
On revenue assumptions, staff said the district adjusted its expected collection rate to 93% (down from a 97% assumption used in the adopted budget) because of uncertainties tied to the senior tax-credit program enacted under Senate Bill 190. Using the proposed rate of 3.8816, staff estimated roughly $1,400,000 in additional revenue compared with budget assumptions but emphasized the final impact depends on county collection data, which staff do not expect until October.
No formal tax-rate motion or roll-call vote appears in the transcript excerpt; the presentation constituted the required hearing and information-sharing step. Staff noted that the state auditor’s office and county assessors review assessed valuations and tax-rate calculations, and that final tax-rate ceilings may be determined through that review.
The district emphasized that Proposition 3 funds are restricted to capital-related uses — cycle maintenance, facilities, technology refresh and safety initiatives — and that a small portion (8¢) is allocated for other capital equipment such as bus refreshes. Staff projected Proposition 3 will generate about $30,000,000 for capital investments over the fiscal period described in the presentation.
The board then proceeded to routine business and separate votes recorded in the transcript (minutes approval, consent agenda and a resolution recognizing Disability History and Awareness Month).
