USD 316 board approves resolution to exceed revenue neutral tax rate for 2025–2026

The USD 316 Board of Education voted 6-0 on Sept. 8, 2025, to approve a Resolution to Exceed the Revenue Neutral Rate for the 2025–2026 fiscal year budget. Board President Paul Bruggeman called the Revenue Neutral Rate hearing to order at 6:45 P.M. in the Golden Plains Middle/High School FACS room.

Jeremy Schiltz moved "to approve the Resolution to Exceed the Revenue Neutral Rate for the 2025-2026 fiscal year budget by Roll Call Vote," and Chad Wark seconded. The motion carried 6-0. The board recorded Chad Focke, Jason Rogers, Jeremy Schiltz, Chad Wark and Melissa Wessel as present; Matt Cheney was recorded absent. Parker Christensen entered the hearing at 6:47 P.M.

Before the formal vote, the board "opened the floor to patrons to present ideas, opinions or concerns." The transcript does not record any patron remarks; none are included in the minutes provided. After the roll-call approval, Chad Wark moved and Chad Focke seconded a motion to close the hearing, which carried 6-0.

The approved resolution authorizes the district to set a tax levy above the statutory revenue neutral rate for the coming fiscal year; the transcript records the board's formal approval but does not include the resolution text, the dollar impact on the budget, or projected tax-dollar changes per property. Those details were not specified in the recorded minutes.

The board’s action is a procedural step in local budget-setting that allows the district to collect more revenue than a strict revenue-neutral calculation would permit; next steps typically include incorporating the levy decision into the district budget documents and publishing required notices under Kansas statute. The transcript does not record any objections or debate on the merits of exceeding the rate.