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Osseo board certifies $148.7 million payable-2026 levy after Truth-in-Taxation hearing
Summary
After a statutorily required Truth-in-Taxation presentation, the Osseo Public Schools board certified a payable-2026 levy of $148,688,565.60 — a 4.5% increase from 2025 — and approved the levy by a 6-0 vote.
The Osseo Public Schools Board certified the district's payable-2026 tax levy at $148,688,565.60 on Dec. 16, approving a 4.5% increase from the prior year.
John Morstead, the district's executive director of finance and operations, presented the Truth-in-Taxation information required by state law and explained how state formulas, enrollment changes and voter-approved levies shape a district's tax bill. "Proposed payable '26 tax levy is an increase from 2025 of just over $6,400,000 or 4.5%," Morstead said during the presentation. He also showed the district's per-pupil funding trends and explained that changes in property market values affect individual taxpayers differently.
The district followed that presentation with a public comment period. Resident Eric VanDenavan told the board his own property tax bill was about $10,000 and said he wants more parental choice in how tax dollars are used. "I don't have any control over how that money is spent," he said, arguing that he could not support tax increases without school-choice options.
Board chair Tanya Prince moved to certify the levy and Director Thomas Brooks seconded the motion. The board voted 6-0 to adopt the final levy. Morstead told the board that revenues collected in 2026 will feed the district's FY 2027 budget, which runs July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027.
The Truth-in-Taxation process provides a formal public hearing; the district also pointed residents to the county and state resources for property-tax relief programs such as the homestead credit refund and senior deferral.
