Cache County board approves interim budget, proposes higher property tax rates to preserve state funding

Cache County School District board members voted unanimously Thursday to approve an interim budget for fiscal year 2027 and to adopt proposed property tax rates that would generate roughly $8.6 million in additional local property tax revenue.

Business administrator Jared Black told the board the district’s assessed valuation is just over $12 billion and projected K–12 enrollment for next year is 19,703. He said the proposed increase in local levies is primarily to preserve the district’s access to a state guarantee program: “the district would be losing in the area of $7 to $8 million” if local levies fall below the threshold required to receive full state guarantee funding, Black said.

The proposed levy changes would shift more revenue to the district from property taxes while reducing reliance on certain state funding streams. Jared Black estimated the additional $8.6 million would be used mainly to make ongoing funding whole in the voted/board levy program (about $6 million) and to staff three new schools opening this fall (about $2 million), with remaining funds for additional buses and facility needs.

Why it matters: Utah requires a combined voted and board levy at or above 0.02000 to qualify for full guarantee funding. Cache County’s combined rate had fallen below that level; restoring local levies prevents an estimated multimillion‑dollar reduction in state revenue. Board members repeatedly emphasized the complexity of state K–12 funding and the difficulty of explaining the shift to taxpayers.

Key figures and technical details: Black said the state weighted pupil unit (WPU) rose 4.2% to $4,870 per full‑time student. The district expects to receive just over $800,000 in new early‑literacy funding, earmarked roughly $500,000 for paraprofessional time and about $300,000 for literacy specialists. The proposed combined local board+voted levy would move from a historical 0.1508 to about 0.2127 in the proposal—ratios that trigger the truth‑in‑taxation process.

New accounting requirement: Under recent rules for proposing rates above the certified level, the district must set aside in a restricted account an amount at least equal to the additional tax revenue while the truth‑in‑taxation process runs between July 1 and final adoption in August. The district already holds $7.5 million in a committed fund and the board approved a temporary transfer of $2 million from unassigned fund balance to the committed category to meet that requirement.

Board process and next steps: Board members approved the interim budget, adopted the proposed rates (which are proposed, not final) and set the required restricted set‑aside. The district scheduled a public hearing on truth‑in‑taxation for Aug. 6, 2026; final tax rates and the original 2027 budget will be considered after that hearing. All motions recorded in the meeting passed unanimously; electronic voting displays experienced glitches but members confirmed voice votes.