Court verdict stymies school bond sale plans
September 21, 2012 at 4:48 am in River Falls Journal
The Dane County Court ruling Friday, Sept. 14 that threw out Gov. Scott Walker’s 2011 law that repealed most collective bargaining for public employees, including teachers, had a spill-over effect on $7.6-million worth of bonds the River Falls School District tried to sell Monday, Sept. 17. Continue Reading
Is it just me or is River Falls constantly spending more money on their schools? It seems to never end. One bond after another. They already have some of the highest property taxes in the area and people just keep asking for more. Do the test scores go up with every renovation? Just wondering……
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Bullseye,
You are partially correct about the high property taxes in the the River Falls school district area. I would argue that one reason is that under The Use Value Tax Assesment tax system that the state uses, homeowners pay more property taxes while businesses and especially farmers pay much less than their FAIR share. Take a look at the property taxes paid by Sheila Harsdorf and compare her property tax bill to that of an average homeowner in Pierce or St. Croix Counties and you’ll see just how little property tax Senator Harsdorf pays and when you consider that she is in a position amend the Use Value Tax Assesment and has not, well you have to wonder who she really represents, homeowners or herself?
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Actually Swifty, I was just commenting on how much the schools keep tapping the taxpayers in RF. The city could also help their residents by allowing some business growth in the area, like say the Walmart they turned down. There is a lot that goes on at the local level that impacts the property tax bills of residents. It is more easily addressed locally, but statewide changes can help too.
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Bullseye,
The property tax exemptions for area farmers is VERY local. The inequity in the property taxes was created by and for the Harsdorfs. The result is a huge revenue deficit that falls upon local homeowners to make up the shortfall.
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