Building a Brave Future – at the Indian Hill School District, that is the work we are engaged in with you, our investor. As such, on behalf of the Board of Education, I’m pleased to announce the release of our second-annual
Financial Prospectus. This document is available in digital form on our website within our
About section – and will soon be mailed to all district residents. Some important financial information to note:
Homeowner taxes to school went down in 2019The District did an excellent job managing the last bond issue – structuring the refinancing of bonds to achieve taxpayer savings of $8.5 million. That savings for residents comes in the form of reduced millage paid toward the bonds. Effective this year, a significant share of what residents pay on this bond expired – reducing the bond debt by 1.74 mills. That means an annual reduction of $304 on a $500,000 home, and an annual savings of $609 on a $1 million home.
Operating levy historyIt is important to note our last operating levy, which funds the District’s day-to-day expenses, was passed more than 25 years ago, and it was not renewed by the Board of Education in 1998. The Board determined that they would not seek a renewal of the issue, and they would instead allow the funding to expire. During this time, our schools have had to absorb funding cuts, changes in tax laws, and inflationary cost increases. This continues to strain our District’s ability to maintain current educational services, facilities, and learning opportunities that are key to the mission of our District.
RevenueThe majority of our revenue comes from property tax – more than 90 percent. We continue to operate from levies passed in the 1980s and earlier with a near-zero inflationary increase. Additionally, Indian Hill receives minimal state education funding – in fact, just a little more than four percent of our revenue is from this source. This is something we do not anticipate ever increasing but we hope to maintain going forward.
School updates neededAs we communicated with you last year, we are diverting funds from the operating budget to pay for needed building improvements and emergency repairs. Due to this demand on our budget, the District launched a Facilities Assessment Task Force comprised of community members, parents, and staff members in 2018. Work and planning to fully assess the school facilities within the Indian Hill School District continue and remain on schedule.
As a next step, the District’s Steering Committee, a subcommittee of the overarching Facilities Assessment Task Force, launched the next phase of the work which includes an analysis of capital needs at all District school buildings and facilities. Additionally, I have convened a Finance Committee to review school funding processes and capital/operating funding options. The Steering and Finance Committees will join forces to draft potential scenarios for the Board of Education to consider in the near future.
As your treasurer, I will continue to provide you timely financial updates. As always, I thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Mick Davis
Treasurer
Indian Hill Exempted Village School District