At its Aug. 27 meeting, the Wright City School Board held a special hearing to set the annual tax rate for fiscal year (FY) 2027.
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At its Aug. 27 meeting, the Wright City School Board held a special hearing to set the annual tax rate for fiscal year (FY) 2027.
The body held a special tax rate hearing led by Director of Finance Veronica Klaus.
She explained why the meeting is necessary each year.
“We have to set the tax rate,” Klaus said. “It’s what drives our local revenues. Our AV (assessed valuation) this year is going to be $378 million from Lincoln and Warren counties.”
The assessed valuation is $1 million higher than FY26.
While the valuation is slightly higher, the proposed annual rate of $4.4487 per $100 of assessed value remains unchanged from FY26.
With a 100 percent tax collection rate, the district would receive $16.85 million for its annual budget, based on the district's $378 million in assessed property valuation. That potential amount is slightly higher than what the district could have received in FY26.
The only other change will be how the funds are disbursed.
An increase of $0.27 per $100 — to an amount of $3.12 — will go into the general (incidental) fund. That money will come from a change to the debt service fund.
The rate for the capital projects fund remains unchanged from last fiscal year at $0.21, and the tax rate levy for the debt service fund is lowered to $1.12 to account for the $4.4487 rate.
“We’re shifting $0.27,” said Klaus of the movement of funds from the debt service fund to the general fund.
Klaus pointed out that the other fund included in the category listed under items to be funded by the incoming taxes was the teachers’ (salary) fund.
She said that the district uses a different method to pay its educators.
“You may question why we have $0 for the teacher’s fund, and that’s how we pay our teachers,” Klaus said. “We use state funds and make any necessary transfers (into that account).”
The motion passed unanimously, and the tax rate was officially adopted.
District Superintendent Dr. Amy Salvo spoke about what the unchanged FY 27 tax rate will mean for the community.
“We are pleased to maintain our commitment to the Wright City community by keeping the overall tax rate at $4.45, the same rate that has been in place in recent years,” Salvo said. “This allows us to continue providing the high-quality services our students and community expect while remaining fiscally responsible and good stewards of taxpayer dollars.”
